Department for Transport

Trains: Children

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of space for pushchairs on trains.

Chris Heaton-Harris: There are mandatory standards for rail vehicle accessibility. The standards include the provision of wheelchair spaces on trains as well as making travel easier for those travelling with prams/pushchairs and small children. Except where a dispensation exists, all rail vehicles, including trams, must meet the accessibility standards and my Department is closely monitoring the rail industry’s progress towards meeting them.

Cycling and Walking: Infrastructure

Mike Kane: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much (a) capital and (b) revenue funding has been allocated from which (i) local and (ii) national funding streams to (A) cycling and (B) walking projects in England in each of the last five years.

Chris Heaton-Harris: On 7 February, the Department published a detailed breakdown of annual investment in cycling and walking since 2016/17 alongside the first report on progress made towards delivering the Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy (CWIS). Copies of the report and other associated information have been placed in the House libraries. The Department does not hold data relating to funding allocated from local funding streams for cycling and walking.

Cycling and Walking: Infrastructure

Mike Kane: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much (a) capital and (b) revenue funding has been allocated or is estimated to be allocated from which (i) local and (ii) national funding streams to (A) cycling and (B) walking projects in England in (1) 2019-20 and (2) each of the next five years.

Chris Heaton-Harris: In both 2019/20 and 2020/21, it is estimated that some £600 million will be invested in cycling and walking projects in England, outside London. The majority of this funding will be drawn from wider transport and infrastructure funds, including the Transforming Cities Fund, Local Growth Fund, Housing Infrastructure Fund and Highways Maintenance Fund. In both years, the Department for Transport has also allocated dedicated funding of £20 million to local authorities through the Access Fund, and £13 million for the Bikeability training programme. Decisions on further funding from 2020/21 onwards will be made at the forthcoming Budget and Spending Review. This will also allocate funding for Conservative Party manifesto commitments, including the £350m Cycle Infrastructure Fund and to expand the Bikeability scheme. The Department does not hold data relating to funding allocated from local funding streams for cycling and walking.

Taxis: Standards

Wes Streeting: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 4 February 2020 to Question 10420, what the timeframe is for the publication of the Statutory Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Safeguarding Guidance.

George Freeman: I refer the hon Member to the answer I gave on 4 February, to Question UIN 10420.https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-01-30/10420/

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Dame Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent estimate he has made of the value of all residential property purchased by HS2 Ltd to facilitate the construction of High Speed Two.

Paul Maynard: As at 31 January 2020, the Secretary of State has acquired 1,151 properties at a cost of £715,398,387 through the statutory blight and non-statutory property compensation schemes across all phases of HS2. The property compensation schemes strike a balance between supporting impacted property owners and protecting the public purse. The schemes were introduced gradually to each of the three HS2 phases between 2010-2017 following extensive public consultation. They will remain in place until one year after each HS2 phase is operational.

Roads: Accidents

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent steps he has taken to reduce the number of people killed or seriously injured in road traffic accidents.

George Freeman: The Government is committed to improving the safety of all road users and reducing the number of those needlessly killed and injured on our roads is a key priority for the Department. The Road Safety Statement, ‘A Lifetime of Road Safety’, published in July last year, describes in some detail the Department’s intention to undertake a set of actions in the coming years aimed at improving road safety. The effectiveness of these measures will be kept under review. The Road Safety Statement can be viewed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/road-safety-statement-2019-a-lifetime-of-road-safety.

Road Traffic

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the level of congestion on the road network in England.

George Freeman: Congestion statistics on the Strategic Road Network and local ‘A’ roads are published quarterly. The latest statistics are up to June 2019. On the Strategic Road Network (SRN) up to June 2019, the average delay is estimated to be 9.4 seconds per vehicle per mile compared to speed limits, a 1.2% increase compared to the year up to June 2018. The average speed is estimated to be 59.0 mph, 0.4% down on the year ending June 2018. On the local ‘A’ road network up to June 2019, the average delay is estimated to be 43.2 seconds per vehicle per mile compared to free-flow. The average speed is estimated to be 25.4mph. Due to a break in the statistical series, comparisons over time are not possible.

Public Transport

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent steps he has taken to increase the number of people who use public transport.

George Freeman: For the seventh year in a row, the Department has capped regulated rail fares in line with inflation. We have already cut costs for hundreds of thousands of passengers with new 26-30 and 16-17 railcards, and will be rolling out a new Veteran’s Railcard to give 830,000 former servicemen and women a third off their rail costs. We are committed to taking decisive action on the recommendations of the Williams Rail Review. We have launched single-leg fares trial on LNER and announced a flexible season ticket trial for passengers travelling on certain routes with GTR, due to launch later this year. We have also established a new ‘fares trials fund’, to kick start further trials this year across the country. These will save money for thousands of passengers, and provide the foundations for reform of the whole fares system. The Bus Services Act 2017 introduced new powers for local authorities and operators to work together to grow bus passenger numbers. The £220 million Better Deal for Bus Users package provides new funding to help transform bus services. The National Bus Strategy will work along with a long-term funding settlement and a review of existing bus funding to increase bus usage. On top of the £1 billion spent by the Government on concessionary travel for eligible older and disabled people around £250 million is paid every year to support bus services in England to keep fares lower.

Bus Services: Young People

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent steps he has taken to encourage more people aged under 25 to travel by bus.

George Freeman: Concessionary travel legislation gives local authorities the flexibility to offer local travel concessions such as free or discounted bus travel to young people, if they choose to do so. Such enhancements are not funded by central Government but from local resources such as Council Tax. In 2019-20, local authorities in 19 of the 89 Travel Concession Authority (TCAs) areas outside of London offer some form of youth concession, and bus operators in 76 of the 89 TCA areas outside of London offered some form of youth discount.

Road Traffic

Mike Kane: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2020 to Question 9041, what assumptions the National Transport Model (NTM) makes on the (a) levels of cycling, walking, rail and bus travel (i) in 2020 and (ii) after 2020; and (b) changes in those levels compared with the model’s baseline year, in order to produce NMT's forecasts of future motorised road traffic.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The National Transport Model (NTM) does not make explicit assumptions about levels of cycling, walking, rail and bus travel. To account for the influence of these modes on road traffic the NTM includes assumptions about the convenience and cost of these alternatives. For cycling and walking this was based purely on travel time. In Road Traffic Forecasts 2018 (RTF18) assumed cycling and walking speeds were set in the model base year and remained constant in all scenario and forecast years. For bus and rail, this included both travel time and fares. In RTF18 the assumptions around rail fares were based on current fares policy. Bus fares were assumed to grow in line with the Retail Price Index (RPI) plus an average of historical increases.

Large Goods Vehicles: Testing

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2020 to Question 9654 on Large Goods Vehicles: Testing, what discussions he has had with stakeholders on privatising heavy goods vehicle testing stations.

George Freeman: Pursuant to the answer of 3 February, I can confirm the Secretary of State has had no discussions with stakeholders on privatising heavy goods vehicle testing stations.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 4 February 2020 to Question 8236 on High Speed 2 Railway Line, what estimate he has made of the reduction in journey times between the North East and Midlands after the completion of High Speed Two.

Paul Maynard: HS2 Phase 2b would reduce journey times between the Midlands and the North East. For example, the journey time between Birmingham and Newcastle will reduce by over 50 minutes.

High Speed Two

Dame Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, for what reason the minutes of HS2 Ltd board meetings have not been published since October 2019.

Paul Maynard: As said in response to a previous PQ (PQ939) HS2 Ltd are required to publish such minutes within three months of the meeting being held. The minutes from the respective meetings in October have been published. Meetings held since October will be made available via the company’s website according to these timings. The minutes for October can be found on the link below: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/861398/191030_HS2_Board_Minutes.pdf.

High Speed Two

Dame Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, for what reason the minutes of HS2 Ltd audit and risk assurance committee meetings have not been published since October 2019.

Paul Maynard: The Board and the Assurance and Risk Committee minutes for October can be found on the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/high-speed-two-limited/about/our-governance#board-meeting-minutes

High Speed Two

Dame Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will publish the full results of the IPSOS MORI public opinion work commissioned by HS2 Ltd.

Paul Maynard: The reports of the public opinion survey work, undertaken by Ipsos Mori, commissioned by HS2 Ltd will be published this spring.

High Speed Two

Dame Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many HS2 Ltd board meetings Ministers have attended; what the name is of each Minister who attended; and on what date they attended.

Paul Maynard: In the past twelve months no Ministers have attended any HS2 Ltd board meetings. HS2 Ltd is held to account by the Department for Transport through the Development Agreement and through its Framework Document which defines its corporate standards.

Selby-Hull railway line

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to increase train speeds between Doncaster and Hull; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Heaton-Harris: Passengers between major urban areas across the North will benefit from a comprehensive range of improvements with the introduction of higher-quality services on longer-distance routes which includes the route between Doncaster and Hull. The package of improvements which are still being rolled out, will include better trains, more comfort and reduced journey times on some routes. Train services between Hull and Doncaster are also provided by Hull Trains which is an open-access operator and is in the process of introducing a new fleet of brand new trains.

Transport: Midlands

Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 4 February 2020 to Question 9106, on Transport: Midlands, what comparative assessment he has made of the level of funding allocated from the public purse to transport programmes in the (a) East Midlands and (b) West Midlands.

George Freeman: All transport schemes are assessed on the merits of their case. We are taking steps to improve transport infrastructure where needed, to level-up the country, including across the Midlands, such as developing the Midlands Rail Hub. Our most recent public analysis shows that over the period 18/19 to 20/21 we will have spent an average of £264 per head in the East Midlands each year and £255 in the West Midlands.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Green Deal Scheme: Appeals

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 3 October 2019 to Question 292374 on Green Deal Scheme: Appeals, how many cases from Kilmarnock and Loudoun constituency that were referred to her have been with her office for (a) one, (b) two, (c) three, (d) four, (e) five, (f) six, (g) seven, (h) eight, (i) nine, (j) 10, (k) 11 and (l) 12 months or longer without a final decision having been made.

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many offers of compensation have been made by her Department to appellants as a result of mis-selling by the company HELMS; and of those offers how many were (a) accepted and settled and (b) rejected by consumers in favour of their original offer of compensation from the Green Deal Finance Company.

Kwasi Kwarteng: At 5th February 2020 there are 20 outstanding appeals, relating to the company Home Energy & Lifestyle Management Ltd (HELMS) from households in the Kilmarnock and Loudoun constituency. The table below provides details of the age of the outstanding appeals in the constituency. Months outstandingNumber of appeals1 or under02030405260708090103116120Longer than 12 months9 As of 5th February 2020, a total of 61 Intention Notices have been issued in respect of complaints about mis-selling of the Green Deal by HELMS.

Sales Methods

Mrs Andrea Jenkyns: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps her Department is taking to tackle the use of pressure selling techniques.

Kelly Tolhurst: Legislation prohibits traders from using misleading or aggressive selling practices towards consumers. Preventing consumer rips offs like these is a key priority for the Government, and we will consult early this year on strengthening consumer enforcement arrangements further. Consumers who believe they have been a victim of pressure selling should report the matter through the Citizens Advice consumer service on 0808 223 1133 (www.citizensadvice.org.uk). Consumers living in Scotland should report the matter through Advice Direct Scotland on 0808 164 6000 (www.consumeradvice.scot/).

Fireworks: Sales

Chris Elmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the enforcement of age restrictions by outlets on the sale of fireworks.

Chris Elmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the regulation on age restrictions in relation to the sale of fireworks.

Chris Elmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a licence for the purchase of fireworks.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) is developing a fact-based evidence base on the key issues that have been raised around fireworks. Key issues that have been raised include the regulation of age restrictions and restricting the sale of fireworks. The evidence base is considering data on noise and disturbance, anti-social behaviour, non-compliance, environmental impact, and the impact on humans and animals. This will build a full picture of the data around fireworks in order to identify whether, and what, further action is appropriate.

Warm Home Discount Scheme

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans her Department has to extend the Warm Home Discount scheme beyond 2021.

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps her Department is taking to increase the reach of the Warm Home Discount scheme by using current data matching powers to allow more households to receive rebates automatically.

Kwasi Kwarteng: We are currently considering the future of the scheme past 2021 with the aim of consulting in the first half of this year. This will include the consideration on the expansion of data matching to allow more households to receive rebates automatically.

National Federation of Subpostmasters: Expenditure

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 28 January 2020 to Question 6029 on National Federation of Sub-Postmasters: Expenditure, what those specific projects established to support postmasters were; and what the £1.5 million per annum for the National Federation of Sub-Postmasters' annual operations is spent on.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Government recognises the critical role that post offices and their postmasters play in communities and for small businesses across the UK. This is why the Government committed to safeguard the post office network and protect existing rural services. The overall number of post offices across the UK remains at its most stable in decades with over 11,500 branches thanks to significant Government investment of over £2 billion since 2010.While the Government sets the strategic direction for the Post Office, it allows the company the commercial freedom to deliver this strategy as an independent business. Postmasters and specific projects that Post Office Limited have established to support is an operational matter for Post Office Limited.

Tom Cooper

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to Answer of 28 January 2020 to Question 6031 on Post Office: Public Appointments, by which selection process was Tom Cooper offered the role of Shareholder Non-Executive Director on the Post Office Board.

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to Answer of 28 January 2020 to Question 6031 on Post Office: Public Appointments, what salary Tom Cooper receives as Non-Executive Director of the Post Office Board.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Government has had a Shareholder Non-Executive Director on the Board of Post Office Limited since the company was separated from the Royal Mail in April 2012. This right is provided for in POL’s Articles of Association. Tom Cooper was appointed as a Director of UK Government Investments through a competitive process and was proposed to BEIS as the department’s next representative on the POL Board. This was agreed by BEIS and Tom Cooper was appointed on 27 March 2018. Tom Cooper does not receive a salary for being on the Post Office Board.

Parental Leave

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, when she plans to publish the outcome of the Neonatal Leave and Pay consultation, which closed on 29 November 2019.

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, when neonatal leave and pay will be available to parents with a baby receiving neonatal care.

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate her Department has made of the cost per annum to the public purse of introducing for parents of premature babies an entitlement to (a) two weeks of neonatal leave and pay and (b) an additional week of neonatal leave and pay for each week a baby is in neonatal care paid at the statutory maternity pay rate.

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate her Department has made of the cost per annum to the private sector of introducing for parents of premature babies an entitlement to (a) two weeks of neonatal leave and pay and (b) an additional week of neonatal leave and pay for each week a baby is in neonatal care.

Kelly Tolhurst: This Government is determined to make Britain the best place in the world to work. As announced in the Queens’ Speech, we will be bringing forward an Employment Rights Bill to deliver the greatest reform of workers’ rights in over 20 years. This will include measures to allow parents of children who have been in neonatal care for a prolonged stay to take additional paid leave (subject to qualifying criteria). This will take forward the proposals which the Government consulted on from July to October last year. The consultation outlined our estimates of the cost of this policy to business and to the Exchequer. This covered a range of options for how many weeks leave and pay the entitlement would cover, as well as the impact of a qualifying ‘minimum stay’ in neonatal care. The consultation document is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/good-work-plan-proposals-to-support-families with provisional costings on p44. The Government will publish a full impact assessment when the Bill is introduced in Parliament. We look forward to setting out our plans soon with the publication of the Government Response.

Parental Leave: Childbirth

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether her Department offers additional parental leave to its employees who become parents of premature babies.

Nadhim Zahawi: The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy does not currently offer additional parental leave specifically to employees who become parents of premature babies. All employees can apply for paid special leave or unpaid parental leave, both of which are considered on a case-by-case basis. The Department does offer employees maternity leave, adoption leave, paternity leave, and shared parental leave. The Government is committed to enhancing workers’ rights and to supporting people to balance their work and caring responsibilities. We have already laid regulations in Parliament that will give grieving parents a right to paid time off work. We will also introduce a new entitlement to carers’ leave as well as entitlement to paid leave for parents of children who spend time in neonatal care. We are committed to making the UK the best place to work and grow a business. As announced in the Queen’s Speech, we will bring forward an Employment Rights Bill to deliver the greatest reform of workers’ rights in over 20 years.

Equal Pay: LGBT People

Dawn Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps she is taking to tackle the LGBT+ pay gap.

Kelly Tolhurst: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Business: Equality

Dawn Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent discussions she has had with representatives of FTSE 100 companies on diversity.

Dawn Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps she plans to take to improve reporting on LGBT+ inclusion in the workplace.

Kelly Tolhurst: BEIS Ministers have regular discussions with FTSE 100 company chairs and CEOs and with business representative organisations and stress the Government’s priority of improving diversity at board and leadership levels, especially in support of the Hampton-Alexander and Parker Reviews. We do all we can to promote business leadership diversity and inclusion. In that wider context, LGBT+ people should be able to be themselves in the workplace, so that they can do their best work and achieve their full potential. Many British businesses, charities and voluntary organisations are leading the way on LGBT+ equality at work; this is regularly highlighted by activities such as the Stonewall Workplace Equality Index, which showcases the UK’s top 100 LGBT employers. At the Government’s request, the Financial Reporting Council revised the UK Corporate Governance Code in 2018 which requires companies to report fully on their diversity and inclusion policies, and how the objectives of these policies relate to wider company strategy. The Government Equalities Office LGBT Action Plan published in July 2018 has over 75 commitments regarding the representation of LGBT people in the workplace. This action plan was informed by the National LGBT Survey of 108,000 respondents and sets out commitments to improve the lives of LGBT people in the workplace.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

British Overseas Territories: Seas and Oceans

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 9 September to Question 284655 on Cayman Islands: Passenger Ships, what assessment the Government has made of the effect on coral reef and other seabed of the Cruise Berthing Facility Project in the Cayman Islands; and what steps he is taking to protect the marine environment of UK Overseas Territories.

Christopher Pincher: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 03 February 2020.The correct answer should have been:

​The Cruise Berthing Facility Project was raised during Lord Ahmad's visit to the Cayman Islands last year and the Governor maintains a regular dialogue with those on both sides of this debate. Environmental protection is an area of devolved responsibility in Overseas Territories. Cayman law requires that an environmental impact assessment be conducted before a development of this nature proceeds. An updated environmental impact assessment scoping document has been submitted to the Environmental Assessment Board for review; once this review is complete a period of public consultation will commence before a final report is issued. Under the Blue Belt programme, United Kingdom funding has been provided to support the Overseas Territories protect and manage their marine environments. The programme is currently on course to protect 4 million square kilometres of ocean around the UKOTs. Further funding was announced in August for FY 2020/21 to continue this important programme.

Christopher Pincher: ​The Cruise Berthing Facility Project was raised during Lord Ahmad's visit to the Cayman Islands last year and the Governor maintains a regular dialogue with those on both sides of this debate. Environmental protection is an area of devolved responsibility in Overseas Territories. Cayman law requires that an environmental impact assessment be conducted before a development of this nature proceeds. An updated environmental impact assessment scoping document has been submitted to the Environmental Assessment Board for review; once this review is complete a period of public consultation will commence before a final report is issued. Under the Blue Belt programme, United Kingdom funding has been provided to support the Overseas Territories protect and manage their marine environments. The programme is currently on course to protect 4 million square kilometres of ocean around the UKOTs. Further funding was announced in August for FY 2020/21 to continue this important programme.

Committee of Permanent Representatives

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, which meetings of (a) the Committee of the Permanent Representatives of the Governments of the Member States to the European Union (COREPER) I and (b) COREPER II were attended by UK officials since 1 October 2019.

Christopher Pincher: Meetings of the Committee of the Permanent Representatives of the Governments of the Member States of the European Union (COREPER) I and COREPER II that were attended by United Kingdom officials since 1 October 2019 are listed below. COREPER ICOREPER II9 October 20192 October 201916 October 20199 October 20196 November 201911 October 201913 November 201913 October 2019

Bangladesh: Tourism

Mr Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Office, what steps he is taking to promote tourism between the UK and Bangladesh.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: The UK-Bangladesh relationship is growing and delivering benefits for both countries, with strong people to people links in areas such as tourism and culture. Officials have discussed increasing tourism between the UK and Bangladesh and we continue to work in partnership with the Bangladeshi authorities to mitigate risks to travellers' safety and security.

Syria: Armed Conflict

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his (a) Russian and (b) Syrian counterpart on the humanitarian effect of the bombing of Idlib.

Dr Andrew Murrison: We are deeply concerned by the humanitarian impact of the ongoing offensive by Syrian regime and Russian forces in Idlib. We are using our position in the UN Security Council to call on Russia and the regime to end the offensive and to respect previously agreed ceasefires in Idlib and their obligations under International Humanitarian Law. We have had no diplomatic relations with the Syrian regime since 2012, and therefore have made no representations to the Syrian regime. We continue to express our concerns to Russia. Most recently, officials raised this with the Russian Embassy in London on 4 February.

Israel: Bedouin

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 28 January 2020 to Question 5527 on Israel: West Bank, how many of the cases funded through the Government’s legal aid programme to Bedouin communities and Palestinians facing demolition or eviction have been (a) successful and (b) unsuccessful in preventing demolition or eviction.

Dr Andrew Murrison: Of those cases provided with legal representation through our legal aid programme, 97 per cent have resulted in suspension of demolitions and evictions, allowing Palestinians to remain in their homes.

Israel: Palestinians

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the oral contribution of 30 January 2020 of the Minister for the Middle East and North Africa, Official Report column 935, on Middle East Peace Plan, what steps in addition to condemnation he plans to take in the event that annexation occurs.

Dr Andrew Murrison: As the Foreign Secretary set out in Parliament on 4 February, any move to unilaterally annex territory would be contrary to international law, damaging to peace efforts, and could not pass unchallenged. Although we will not discuss possible responses to hypothetical situations, we call on all parties to refrain from actions that would imperil the viability of a two-state solution, based on the 1967 lines, and make it harder to achieve a just and lasting peace.

Israel: West Bank

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 28 January 2020 to Question 5527 on Israel: West Bank, to what essential infrastructure the UK has allocated that funding for vulnerable Palestinians in Area C.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The UK has allocated funding towards supporting around 124 Palestinian communities in Area C and East Jerusalem through needs-based and emergency services. This helps provide pre-fabricated residential, livelihood and agricultural structures. Funding has also been used to provide off grid energy to 50 households in Area C through the installation of 30 renewable energy systems.

Israel: Palestinians

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 28 January 2020 to Question 5529 on Israel: Palestinians, whetherthe Government plans to replicate the provisions of the Russia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 in relation to Israel in the event that part of the Occupied Palestinians Territories is annexed.

Dr Andrew Murrison: We have made clear our deep concern about the suggestion that any parts of the Occupied Palestinian Territories should be annexed. As the Foreign Secretary set out in Parliament on 4 February, any move to unilaterally annex territory would be contrary to international law, damaging to peace efforts, and could not pass unchallenged. Although we will not discuss possible responses to hypothetical situations, we call on all parties to refrain from actions that would imperil the viability of a two-state solution, based on the 1967 lines, and make it harder to achieve a just and lasting peace.

Amazonia: Rain Forests

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he plans to make to his Brazilian counterpart on protecting the Amazon rainforest from further deforestation.

Christopher Pincher: Ministers and our Embassy in Brasilia routinely engage with the Brazilian Government on many environmental issues, including deforestation. The United Kingdom is committed to encouraging and contributing to international action to address the widespread problem of deforestation.

North Macedonia: NATO

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he has taken to support North Macedonia to undertake a strategic defence review in preparation for NATO membership.

Christopher Pincher: The United Kingdom provided two Defence Advisers to support the drafting and implementation of North Macedonia's Strategic Defence Review. The British Government remains committed to supporting North Macedonia's accession to NATO and looks forward to welcoming North Macedonia as the 30th member of the alliance.

Kashmir: Politics and Government

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to the UN on sending UN delegates to Kashmir to assess the humanitarian and political situation in that region.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: Kashmir was discussed in closed sessions of the UN Security Council in August 2019 and January 2020. We are monitoring the situation in Kashmir closely and the Foreign Secretary has discussed the situation there with his Indian and Pakistani counterparts. British High Commission officials visit the region periodically and meet with local authorities and others to discuss a range of issues.

Kashmir: Peace Negotiations

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to organise mediations between the Kashmiri and Indian Governments.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: HMG's longstanding position is that it is for India and Pakistan to find a lasting political resolution on Kashmir, taking into account the wishes of the Kashmiri people. Our emphasis is on encouraging the Governments of India and Pakistan to open channels of communication and engage in dialogue as a means to resolving differences. The pace and scope of any dialogue is for India and Pakistan to determine. It is not for the UK to prescribe a solution or to act as a mediator.

Kashmir: Armed Conflict

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential for (a) an escalation of the conflict and (b) nuclear warfare in Kashmir.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: We continue to monitor the situation in Kashmir and we urge all parties to refrain from actions that could jeopardise regional stability. We are in regular contact with the Governments of India and Pakistan. The Prime Minister has underlined the importance of resolving issues through dialogue to his counterparts in both India and Pakistan. Most recently, the Foreign Secretary discussed the situation in Kashmir with the Foreign Minister of Pakistan and Lord Ahmad, Minister for South Asia, raised the issue with the Indian Minister of State for External and Parliamentary Affairs.

Israel: Palestinians

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to support a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The UK is committed to making progress towards a two-state solution. We consistently call for an immediate end to all actions that undermine the viability of the two-state solution, including terrorism, anti-Semitic incitement, settlement expansion, and the demolition of Palestinian property in the West Bank. Steps to transform the situation in Gaza are also needed. We have a regular dialogue with both the Palestinian Authority and the Government of Israel at all levels. We are encouraging both sides to maintain calm and avoid taking actions which make peace more difficult to achieve. We continue to work closely with international partners strongly advocating a two-state solution and encouraging a return to meaningful negotiations between both parties.

Turks and Caicos Islands: Undocumented Migrants

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether his Department has provided financial support to the Government of the Turks and Caicos Islands to manage the costs of irregular migration.

Christopher Pincher: Following an increase in activity in 2018, the UK deployed a five-person team to review and support the Turks and Caicos Islands' (TCI) approach to managing migration and provided funding for TCI to upgrade their radar capability.A comprehensive Maritime Security and Border Integrity Assessment of the Caribbean Overseas Territories and Bermuda was published in 2019 and a UK Security Advisor has been seconded to TCI since September 2019 to strengthen National Security capability on the Territory. This has led to the launch of TCI's first National Security Strategy, which addresses irregular migration as a key threat.As of our ongoing commitment to support the Government of the Turks and Caicos Islands, the UK continues to provide financial and technical support for investigations into human trafficking, and is supporting TCI to establish a Defence Force which will assist the Maritime Police in protecting the Territory's borders.

Children: Abduction

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has any plans to update the current guidance on cases of parental child abduction to Japan.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: The FCO provides information on International Parental Child Abduction on GOV.UK, as well as country specific information for Japan. The British Government continues to work closely with our Japanese partners to ensure the 1980 Hague Convention is operated effectively. In 2019, Japan introduced new legislation, which should come into effect in 2020, with the aim of improving the enforcement process in international parental abduction cases. Gov.uk will be updated to reflect this when the legislation comes into effect.

Northern Ireland Office

Life Imprisonment

Gavin Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what estimate he has made of the number of life prisoners licences revoked under Section 9 of the Life Sentences (NI) Order 2001 in each year since 2001.

Julian Smith: Since the devolution of policing and justice to the Northern Ireland Executive in 2010, the recall of individuals released on a life licence, further to Section 9 of the Life Sentences (NI) Order 2001, has been a matter for the Department of Justice in Northern Ireland, except where this relates to national security. The Department of Justice shall be able to provide details relating to the number of licences revoked.

Prison Sentences

Gavin Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what estimate he has made of the number of licences revoked under Section 8 of the Northern Ireland (Sentences) Act 1998 in each year since1998.

Julian Smith: Section 8 of the NI (Sentences) Act 1998 relates to the revocation of a declaration by the Sentence Review Commissioners that a prisoner is eligible for release. To date, two declarations have been revoked under this provision since 1998.

Department of Health and Social Care

NHS: Finance

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much (a) NHS England and (b) clinical commissioning groups spent in aggregate on (i) primary medical services, (ii) community health services, (iii) mental health services, (iv) acute health services, (v) specialised services and (vi) all health and care services in cash terms in each year since 2016-17; and how much is forecast to be spent in aggregate in each of those areas in the 2019-20 financial year.

Edward Argar: The information is shown in the following table.2016-17 £ billion2017-18 £ billion2018-19 £ billion2019-20 £ billionSpecialised services15.416.417.218.9Primary medical care9.19.49.710.5Community services7.37.47.58.0Continuing Care4.74.64.74.9Clinical commissioning group (CCG) acute40.141.442.945.3CCG core mental health7.68.18.59.2Other17.818.318.618.4Total programme spend102.0105.5109.1115.2  Of which: Payments to local authorities3.13.33.53.4 Notes:The small forecast reduction in other spend relates to technical changes in commissioning arrangements between NHS England and CCGs in respect of delegated primary care commissioning.To present all figures on the same basis, the mental health figures presented here are collected in a different way than the mental health dashboard. The figures presented in the mental health dashboard are on a wider basis, and include mental health spend included in other budgets (for example, on mental health prescribing), and the specialised service line here includes spending on mental health that falls within specialised services.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Research

Mr Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much money from the public purse has been allocated to funding research on myalgic encephalomyelitis since 2010.

Mr Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the effect of recent changes in the level of funding for research into myalgic encephalomyelitis on clinical understanding of that condition.

Caroline Dinenage: Between 2010-11 to 2018-19, the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) and the UK Research Innovation have funded £6,976,001 of research on myalgic encephalomyelitis, also referred to as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS).While funding fluctuates in response to projects funded, spend on ME/CFS has remained stable in recent years, ranging from around £700-850,000. Given that funding has remained stable, no assessment has been made about the impact of change in the level of research funding.

General Practitioners: South Yorkshire

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time was for a GP appointment in (a) Rotherham Borough, (b) South Yorkshire and (c) Rother Valley in each of the last 12 months.

Jo Churchill: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 07 February 2020.The correct answer should have been:

Data showing the time between booking an appointment with a general practice and the appointment taking place for practices in NHS Rotherham Clinical Commissioning Group and South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw Sustainability and Transformation Partnership (STP) in the 12 months from January 2019 to December 2019 is presented in the attached table.NHS Digital publishes ‘Appointments in General Practice’. This is an experimental data collection which is still being refined and improved. NHS Digital is unable to provide appointments in general practice data at the level requested. Rotherham Borough, South Yorkshire and Rother Valley do not align perfectly to a CCG; it has therefore provided data NHS Rotherham CCG and South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw STP.It should be noted that the ‘time from booking to appointment’ refers only to the time elapsed between the successful booking of an appointment and the appointment taking place. The data does not take into consideration that many patients will be appropriately booking ahead as part of the continuity of care they receive for long-term conditions. 



PQ10490 table
(Word Document, 26.97 KB)

Jo Churchill: Data showing the time between booking an appointment with a general practice and the appointment taking place for practices in NHS Rotherham Clinical Commissioning Group and South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw Sustainability and Transformation Partnership (STP) in the 12 months from January 2019 to December 2019 is presented in the attached table.NHS Digital publishes ‘Appointments in General Practice’. This is an experimental data collection which is still being refined and improved. NHS Digital is unable to provide appointments in general practice data at the level requested. Rotherham Borough, South Yorkshire and Rother Valley do not align perfectly to a CCG; it has therefore provided data NHS Rotherham CCG and South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw STP.It should be noted that the ‘time from booking to appointment’ refers only to the time elapsed between the successful booking of an appointment and the appointment taking place. The data does not take into consideration that many patients will be appropriately booking ahead as part of the continuity of care they receive for long-term conditions. 



PQ10490 table
(Word Document, 26.97 KB)

Breastfeeding

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to promote the health benefits of exclusively breastfeeding babies; and what steps his Department is taking to enable babies born prematurely to receive a human milk based diet.

Jo Churchill: The Government is committed to supporting mothers to breastfeed their babies where possible, especially during the first six months. We would like to see more mothers breastfeeding and doing so for longer and are working with our partners including Public Health England (PHE), NHS England, UNICEF and others to achieve this goal. Support and information, including on the benefits of exclusive breastfeeding, is provided through various sources. Examples include NHS Choices, the National Breastfeeding Helpline, PHE’s Start4life, UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Initiative and local peer support parents. The PHE interactive Breast-Feeding Friend voice product ‘chatbot’ is now available through Facebook Messenger, Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant and provides live breastfeeding support to new mums at any time of day. The promotion of breastfeeding is one of the six high-impact areas for health visiting. The mandated contact points are an opportunity for health visitors to support parents around infant feeding. Contact takes place antenatally, at 10 to 14 days and six to eight weeks after birth. Further information on ‘Early years high impact area three: Breastfeeding’ can be viewed at the following link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/754791/early_years_high_impact_area_3.pdf The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s guidelines on postnatal care and neonatal care sets out standards for supporting women to breastfeed whether their babies are born at term or preterm, including being supported to express milk.The Department’s Toolkit for High-Quality Neonatal Services states that as a standard maternity and neonatal services should encourage breastfeeding and the expression of milk through the provision of information and dedicated support. The ‘Advancing our health: prevention in the 2020s’ consultation, invited views on how we can do more to support mothers to breastfeed. The consultation closed in October 2019. We will set out our response to the consultation by spring 2020.

HIV Infection: Drugs

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he is having with local health commissioners on the pause in recruitment for gay and bisexual men on the PrEP impact trial at Conifer-Wilberforce Health Centre, Hull.

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care what discussions he has had with local health commissioners on ensuring access for gay and bisexual men in Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle constituency to the PrEP Impact Trial.

Jo Churchill: Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is currently provided in England through the three-year PrEP Impact Trial. Participation in the trial is on a voluntary basis and it is for clinics and local authorities to decide the number of allocated places they can accept. The Department has held no discussions with local health commissioners in relation to the pause in recruitment for gay and bisexual men on the PrEP impact trial at Conifer-Wilberforce Health Centre or access to the trial in Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle constituency.

Human Papillomavirus: Vaccination

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the WHO recommendation that member states temporarily suspend HPV vaccination programmes for boys.

Jo Churchill: The implications of the World Health Organization’s advice on temporarily suspending human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination programmes for boys are due to be discussed at the next meeting of the Joint Committee of Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) in February 2020. The Department does not currently have plans to suspend the HPV vaccination programme for boys in England, but will take account of the JCVI’s advice in any future review of its policy on this issue.

Human Papillomavirus: Males

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information he holds on the level of risk of (a) HPV infection and (b) HPV-caused diseases among boys aged 14-15 compared with boys aged 12-13.

Jo Churchill: Public Health England does not hold information on the level of risk of either human papillomavirus (HPV) infection or HPV-caused diseases among boys aged 14-15 compared with boys aged 12-13.The latest data on HPV infection in young 16-18-year-old women has shown HPV 16 and 18 infections to be less than 2%. Infection rates in their male sexual partners are expected to be correspondingly low. Data to the end of 2018 can be found at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/hpv-prevalence-in-sexually-active-young-females-in-england

Human Papillomavirus: Vaccination

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the cost-effectiveness of a HPV vaccination programme for boys too old to be eligible for the universal programme; and if he will make a statement.

Jo Churchill: Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination for boys aged 12-13 was rolled out nationally in September 2019. There are no plans for a catch-up HPV vaccination programme for older males as evidence suggests that they are already benefitting greatly from the indirect protection, known as herd protection, that has built up from 10 years of the girls’ HPV vaccination programme. The priority is to make sure that as many eligible 12-13-year-old boys and girls as possible are offered protection from HPV infection from the 2019-20 school year.In April 2018, the HPV vaccination programme was extended to include men who have sex with men offering protection for males at particularly high risk up to the age of 45.The current United Kingdom approach is supported by the best available evidence and by recommendations from our independent experts, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation.

Human Papillomavirus: Vaccination

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will introduce a catch-up HPV vaccination programme for males and females up to the age of 26.

Jo Churchill: Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination for boys aged 12-13 was rolled out nationally in September 2019. There are no plans for a catch-up HPV immunisation programme for older males as evidence suggests that they are already benefitting greatly from the indirect protection, known as herd protection, that has built up from 10 years of the girls’ HPV vaccination programme. The priority is to make sure that as many eligible 12-13-year-old boys and girls as possible are offered protection from HPV infection from the 2019-20 school year.

HIV Infection: Drugs

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the oral contribution of the Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, of 28 January 2020, Official Report column 658, when the additional allocation of funds will be made available to cover the routine commissioning of PrEP ; and from what funding stream that money will be allocated.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what funding mechanism he plans to use for the routine commissioning of PrEP.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, from which budget he plans to fund the non-drug costs of the routine commissioning of PrEP.

Jo Churchill: The Department is continuing to work closely with NHS England and NHS Improvement, Public Health England and local authorities to plan for routine commissioning of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) from April 2020. NHS England and NHS Improvement have already agreed to fund the on-going costs of drugs for PrEP going forward. We will provide information on how other elements of the programme will be funded shortly.

Atezolizumab and Nab-paclitaxel

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what meetings representatives of (a) NICE and (b) NHS England have had with Roche on atezolizumab with nab-paclitaxel for breast cancer patients since the publication of NICE's draft guidance on that drug in October 2019.

Jo Churchill: NHS England and NHS Improvement has advised that it has met with Roche to discuss potential commercial arrangements for atezolizumab with nab-paclitaxel for breast cancer patients.The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has advised that it held a telephone call with Roche on 23 January 2020 regarding atezolizumab with nab-paclitaxel for breast cancer patients and that it has been in contact with Roche by email since the publication of NICE's draft guidance in October 2019.

Atezolizumab and Nab-paclitaxel

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the availability of atezolizumab with nab-paclitaxel on the NHS for breast cancer patients with PDL1 positive metastatic triple negative breast cancer.

Jo Churchill: Atezolizumab is not currently routinely available on the National Health Service for breast cancer patients with PD-L1-positive, triple-negative, advanced breast cancer. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is currently developing recommendations on the use of atezolizumab for this indication through its appraisal programme and published its draft guidance for consultation in October 2019. NICE’s appraisal has been delayed while commercial discussions with the company, Roche, are ongoing. NICE will aim to publish its guidance on the use of atezolizumab as soon as possible following the completion of their commercial discussions. If NICE is able to recommend use of the drug following the commercial discussions, atezolizumab will be eligible for funding through the Cancer Drugs Fund from the point of NICE’s draft guidance. If NICE is able to recommend use of atezolizumab it will be routinely funded by NHS England and NHS Improvement for NHS patients in line with NICE’s recommendations.

Atezolizumab and Nab-paclitaxel

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the publication of the NICE draft guidance on atezolizumab with nab-paclitaxel for certain breast cancer patients on 3 October 2019, what the timetable is for (a) a second committee meeting and (b) issuing final guidance on that drug.

Jo Churchill: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has advised that it does not yet have a confirmed date for the second appraisal committee meeting or for the publication of final guidance.Under NICE’s processes, if the outcome of the committee meeting is the publication of a final appraisal document, final guidance would be expected 80 days later, unless NICE receives an appeal against the document.NICE’s appraisal is currently delayed while commercial discussions between the company, NHS England and Roche, are ongoing. NICE will aim to publish its guidance on the use of atezolizumab as soon as possible following the completion of commercial discussions.

Carers

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to publish a further review of the Carers’ Action Plan 2018-2020; and whether that review plans to assess the needs of carers of people living with dementia.

Caroline Dinenage: We plan to publish a final report this summer on the Cross-Government Carers Action Plan following its conclusion. The report will consider all commitments and the actions taken.Improving the lives of people living with dementia is a top priority for this Government. We are delivering the Challenge on Dementia 2020 to make England the best country in the world for dementia care.We will be setting out our plans on dementia for England for the period 2020-2025 later this year.

NHS: Staff

Bambos Charalambous: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to allocate adequate funding to support the effective delivery of the recommendations of the final NHS People Plan.

Edward Argar: Health Education England’s budget for 2020/21 includes a £60 million allocation to take forward actions from the interim NHS People Plan. Further investment decisions will be dependent on the up-coming Spending Review and based on the final NHS People Plan.

Tourette's Syndrome: Health Services

Mr Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that NHS staff are trained to provide adequate support to people with Tourette’s.

Edward Argar: Individual National Health Service employers are responsible for ensuring that their staff are trained and competent to carry out their roles safely and effectively.To support NHS employers and their staff, Health Education England’s Programme e-Learning for Healthcare, also offers e-learning sessions which include content on Tourette’s Syndrome.

NHS: Empty Property

Ben Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent discussions he has had with NHS Property Services on under-occupancy of the NHS estate; and what assessment he has made of the potential merits of selling unoccupied NHS property to fund capital investment in the Health Service.

Edward Argar: NHS Property Services aims to reduce vacant space in its estate by engaging with tenants to make sure that their accommodation meets their operational needs. NHS Property Services has introduced more flexible occupancy options; and incentives to more quickly identify opportunities for the re-let or sale of properties. By March 2019, NHS Property Services had reduced vacant space across its portfolio to 6.9% from 12% in April 2017.NHS Property Services works closely with local clinical commissioning groups and National Health Service providers to optimise the estate and where appropriate to release properties for sale which are surplus to local healthcare requirements. Where properties are vacant for over six months without a defined future healthcare use, NHS Property Services will seek to market the property to mitigate ongoing costs locally.The current policy is that capital receipts from the sale of surplus sites are reinvested in backlog maintenance in the NHS Property Services estate, according to needs and priorities on a national basis.

London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust: Public Appointments

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the timetable is for the appointment of the chief executive of London North West University Healthcare NHS trust; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Argar: The timetable for the appointment of the chief executive of London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust is managed locally by the Trust.

Mount Vernon Hospital: Land

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to sell off NHS land on the Mount Vernon Hospital site; and will he make a statement.

Edward Argar: The latest published data on National Health Service trust surplus land disposals is available online, and reflects the position at 31 March 2019:https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/nhs-surplus-land/2018-19-england-pasWe understand that the Hillingdon Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is engaged in a comprehensive review and re-formulation of its clinical strategy, which in turn will determine its future estate requirements.

Suicide

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people died by suicide within two months of attending A&E for a mental health problem in (a) 2018 and (b) 2019.

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of people who died by suicide within two months of presenting at A&E with a mental health condition.

Ms Nadine Dorries: The following table shows the number of people who died by intentional self-poisoning or intentional self-harm within 60 days of attending accident and emergency (A&E) and, through the Accident and Emergency Clinical Coding Structure1, received diagnosis of a ‘psychiatric condition’. Financial yearNumber of people who died by suicide within 60 days of attending A&E and being diagnosed with a psychiatric condition2017/181392018/1979Source: NHS Digital Note: 1Accident and Emergency Clinical Coding Structure: https://www.datadictionary.nhs.uk/version2/web_site_content/pages/codes/administrative_codes/a_amp_e_diagnosis_tables.asp?shownav=1

Smoking

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the Tobacco Control Plan 2017-2022 is making adequate progress to reduce adult smoking prevalence to 12 per cent by 2022.

Jo Churchill: Adult smoking rates in England are at their lowest level recorded at 14.4% of the population. The Government continues to make progress towards delivering the ambition of 12% or less by the end of 2022. As announced in the Prevention Green Paper the Government has set out a further ambition to go ‘smoke-free’ in England by 2030. Proposals for this will be set out at a later date.

Mental Health Services: Children

Munira Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the recent statement from the Children’s Commissioner that England is a decade away from a decent mental health service for all children.

Ms Nadine Dorries: The Children’s Commissioner’s report acknowledges that there have been significant improvements in access to specialist children’s mental health services. The Government is committed to building on this to ensure children get the support they need.The NHS Long Term Plan commits to ensuring at least an additional 345,000 children and young people aged 0-25 can access mental health support by 2023/24, including new Mental Health Support Teams in and near groups of schools and colleges. These teams will cover 20 – 25% of the country by 2023/24.

Mental Health Services: Children and Young People

Munira Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people under-18 years olds waited longer than four weeks to access CAMHS services in the last 12 months (a) in each region and (b) nationally.

Munira Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what was the average waiting time was between referral and second contact for children accessing CAMHS in each Care Commissioning Group area in 2018-2019.

Munira Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time was for children accessing CAMHS in each region in the last 12 months.

Munira Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time was for people under the age of 18 needing Tier 3 CAMHS to start treatment following an initial assessment in each (a) Care Commissioning Group area and (b) NHS trust area in the last 12 months.

Ms Nadine Dorries: The information is not collected in the format requested. However, we have introduced two waiting times for children and young people: for 95% of children (up to 19 years old) with eating disorders to receive treatment within a week for urgent cases and four weeks for routine cases, and for 56% of patients of all ages experiencing a first episode of psychosis to receive treatment within two weeks of referral. We are on target to meet these aims by 2020/21.Quarterly data and trend indicators on these two waiting time targets is available through the Mental Health Five Year Forward View Dashboard.A national access and waiting times standard for wider child and adolescent mental health services has not yet been defined.

Coronavirus

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with local authorities’ social care providers on protecting older and vulnerable people from the coronavirus.

Jo Churchill: We have put in place proportionate, precautionary measures in response to the outbreak of coronavirus in China, guided by the clinical advice of the Chief Medical Officer and national experts in the treatment of infectious diseases.On 3 February 2020 we issued advice to healthcare professionals in primary care and community settings including pharmacy. This advice was sent to all social care providers that are registered with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency Central Alerting System. This advice highlighted what to do if a someone has concerns that they may have been exposed to or become infected with the novel coronavirus. It also directed healthcare professionals to further online guidance produced by Public Health England.In addition, through a National Steering Group, the department is working closely with national partners including the Care Provider Alliance, the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services, the Local Government Association and the Care Quality Commission to help co-ordinate advice and support to the adult social care sector.

Plastic Surgery: Regulation

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2020 to Question 8164 on Plastic Surgery, which regulator oversees the administering of (a) botox and (b) other subcutaneous injections of muscle relaxing substances used to improve appearance.

Ms Nadine Dorries: Botulinum toxins are Prescription-Only Medicines. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is responsible for regulating all medicines and medical devices in the United Kingdom.A prescriber, who must be a registered healthcare professional or medical practitioner, may delegate the administration of the medicine to a secondary practitioner. The person administering the injection is not required to be a healthcare professional, but the prescriber retains responsibility for ensuring the treatment is provided safely.Where the treatment is administered by a registered healthcare professional or medical practitioner (e.g. nurse, doctor) they are required to follow the standards set by their regulatory body. Failure to do so can result in an investigation into their fitness to practise and sanctions issued to protect patient safety.

Mental Health Services: Schools

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent estimate his Department has made of the number of schools with mental health teams in England.

Ms Nadine Dorries: Our Green Paper on children and young people’s mental health aims to improve the provision of services in England. One of the key proposals of the Green Paper is to create new Mental Health Support Teams in and near groups of schools and colleges in their areas. In December 2018, we announced 25 Trailblazer sites to run the first wave of 59 Mental Health Support Teams. Initial estimates suggested that each of these teams should be working with 15-20 education settings, though this will vary depending on the number of pupils in each setting. We are collecting data as Mental Health Support Teams are established and will confirm the number of education settings they are working with once that process is complete.

Mental Health Services: Children

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Care what progress his Department has made in improving access to specialist mental health support for children.

Ms Nadine Dorries: We have introduced two waiting times: for 95% of children (up to 19 years old) with eating disorders to receive treatment within a week for urgent cases and four weeks for routine cases, and for 56% of all patients experiencing a first episode of psychosis to be treated within two weeks of referral. We are on target to meet these aims by 2020/21.Our children and young people’s Green Paper sets out how we are piloting a four-week waiting time and are introducing new Mental Health Support Teams. In December 2018, we announced Trailblazer sites to test our proposals, of which twelve will trial waiting times.We have also committed at least a further £2.3 billion a year to mental health services by 2023/24. This will see at least an additional 345,000 children and young people aged 0-25 being able to access support by 2023/24.

Eating Disorders: Research

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to increase funding for research into eating disorders.

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to allocate equivalent funding to research into (a) mental health and eating disorders and (b) physical health and eating disorders; and if he will make a statement.

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding he has allocated to the research of (a) physical health, (b) mental health and (c) eating disorders in each of the last three years.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department funds health and care research through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health. It is not usual practice to ring-fence funds for particular topics or conditions. Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality.The latest spend figures available for research on physical health and mental health in each of the last three complete financial years are as follows: -Financial expenditure2016/172017/182018/19Physical health*£743,063,571£803,718,845£823,680,671Mental health*£76,627,407£80,318,055£93,377,813*It should be noted that the figures provided on both physical health and mental health cover a broad range of research including studies focused on health service provision, public health etc as well as those looking at specific treatments.The NIHR’s research programmes provide a flexible source of funding. The latest spend figures available for research on eating disorders within NIHR’s research programmes in each of the last three complete financial years is as follows:-Financial expenditure (NIHR research programmes)2016/172017/182018/19Eating disorders**£506,187£333,030£862,753**It should be noted that the figures provided above on mental health include studies related to eating disorders.

Mental Health Services: Staff

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to increase the number of (a) staff working in mental health services and (b) specialist staff working in eating disorder services.

Ms Nadine Dorries: We have committed to deliver 50,000 more nurses in the National Health Service by 2024/25, including nurses to deliver vital mental health support.Eligible pre-registration nursing students studying on courses at English universities from September 2020 will benefit from additional support of at least £5,000 a year, which they will not need to repay.There will be up to £3,000 additional funding for some students who choose to study in regions or specialisms struggling to recruit, including £1,000 for new students studying mental health nursing.We are also focused on driving forward work to improve recruitment into psychiatry, including working with the Royal College of Psychiatrists on their ‘Choose Psychiatry’ campaign. To attract more junior doctors into psychiatry, the new junior doctor contract gives psychiatry trainees an additional £21,017 pay premia in addition to their normal pay.

Eating Disorders: Research

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has to allocate funding for the development of evidence-based eating disorder treatments for adults.

Ms Nadine Dorries: NHS England and NHS Improvement and clinical commissioning groups commission eating disorder services based on the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines. NICE guidelines are evidence-based recommendations for health and care in England and they set out the care and services suitable for people with an eating disorder.NICE has published a guideline on the recognition and treatment of eating disorders which includes recommendations on evidence-based care including psychological treatments for anorexia nervosa, binge eating disorder and bulimia nervosa in adults. To support further development of further evidence-based treatments, the National Institute for Health Research has commissioned a number of studies on the treatment of eating disorders.

Dementia: Diagnosis

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will allocate additional funding to support the early diagnosis of dementia.

Caroline Dinenage: NHS England allocates funding to clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) which commission services on behalf of their local populations. It is for CCGs to decide how best to use the funding allocated to them in line with local healthcare needs and priorities, working with other local commissioners and organisations.The Challenge on Dementia 2020 sets out the ambition for two thirds of people with dementia in England to receive a formal diagnosis. This has been achieved and exceeded nationally.

General Practitioners: Houghton and Sunderland South

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many (a) full-time and (b) part-time equivalent clinical staff there were in each GP practice in Houghton and Sunderland South constituency in 2018-19.

Jo Churchill: The data is not available in the format requested.

Paramedical Staff: Training

Munira Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what financial assistance is available for people studying to become paramedics.

Edward Argar: From September 2020 eligible paramedic science students will receive a non-repayable annual maintenance grant of at least £5,000 per academic year1. Some students may also be eligible for additional funding, including non-repayable financial support to help with childcare costs.Eligible students can also claim some costs associated with clinical placement and an exceptional hardship fund of up to £3,000 per year. Further detail is available at the following link:https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/learning-support-fundParamedic science students will still have access to tuition fee and maintenance loans and any other additional support that they may be eligible from Student Finance England.The Department is leading work with its delivery partners on options for potential additional student funding for some healthcare students in geographical areas which are facing recruitment challenges. Further information will be published as soon as possible.Note:1https://www.gov.uk/government/news/paramedic-students-will-get-5000-support-payment-each-year

East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust: Maternity Services

Rosie Duffield: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of (a) the implications for his policies of the time taken by East Kent University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust to share with the Care Quality Commission the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists report on maternity services in that trust and (b) the effectiveness of overall NHS clinical governance in relation to maternity services.

Ms Nadine Dorries: In 2015 the Trust informed the Care Quality Commission (CQC) that they had commissioned a review of their maternity services. They also shared information about the actions being taken forward in response to the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists’ findings prior to the CQC’s September 2016 inspection and after that inspection as part of their improvement plan. However, the CQC’s records do not indicate that the CQC received the full report before January 2019.The CQC undertook a further unannounced inspection of maternity services at East Kent in late January 2020 and early February 2020 to follow up on its previous inspections and monitoring of the Trust and the actions the Trust is taking to improve the safety of its maternity services. The CQC will publish its report in due course, in line with its normal publication timelines. NHS England and NHS Improvement are providing support to improve the Trust’s clinical governance for maternity services.NHS England and NHS Improvement and the CQC have been closely monitoring maternity services at the Trust.

Mount Vernon Hospital Northwood: Radiotherapy

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether Mount Vernon Cancer Centre is permitted to provide advanced radiotherapy as recommended by NICE for the treatment of lung cancer; and if he will make a statement.

Jo Churchill: Mount Vernon Cancer Centre (MVCC) is commissioned to provide advanced radiotherapy as recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence for lung cancer.MVCC’s radiotherapy services provide rapid arc techniques on Linear Accelerators for the appropriate cohort of lung patients, and all external beam treatments use Image Guided Radiotherapy techniques. MVCC also delivers Continuous Hyperfractionated Accelerated radiotherapy, as well as Stereotactic Ablative radiotherapy treatments on Cyberknife for early stage tumours.

Mount Vernon Hospital Northwood and Northwick Park Hospital: Radiotherapy

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the (a) age and (b) estimated remaining working life is of radiotherapy machinery at (i) Mount Vernon Cancer Centre and (ii) Northland Park Hospital; and if he will make a statement.

Jo Churchill: Mount Vernon Cancer Centre currently has seven linear accelerators and one Cyberknife machine. Three machines are due for replacement in 2020, three in 2022, one in 2027 and one in 2028.Radiotherapy machinery is normally replaced every 10 years, although some machines can last longer depending on a range of factors, for example, software upgrades. The three machines due to be replaced this year are between 10 and 13 years old.

Mount Vernon Hospital Northwood: Doctors and Nurses

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many (a) nurses and (b) doctors are employed to provide cancer care at Mount Vernon Cancer Centre; and if he will make a statement.

Jo Churchill: NHS England and NHS Improvement were able to provide the following data that details the number of whole time equivalent nurses, and doctors, at Mount Vernon Cancer Centre.- Whole time equivalent nurses – 83; and- Whole time equivalent doctors – 49.

Mount Vernon Hospital Northwood: Vacancies

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of full-time equivalent vacancies there are for (a) nurses, (b) doctors and (c) other clinical professionals at Mount Vernon Cancer Centre; and if he will make a statement.

Jo Churchill: NHS England and NHS Improvement were able to provide the following data that details the vacancy rates in Mount Vernon Cancer Centre for nurses, medical staff, scientific, therapeutic and technical staff, and clinical support staff.- Nursing - 25.6% (nursing);- Medical – 9.4% (medical);- Scientific, therapeutic and technical - 7.9%; and- Clinical Support Staff - 29.2%.

Lung Cancer: Clinical Audit

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answers of 28 January 2020 to Questions 7156 and 7157, how the next National Lung Cancer Audit will be published on 11 June 2020 when the contract for its provision expires on 31 March 2020.

Jo Churchill: Healthcare Quality Improvement Partnership (HQIP), as commissioner of the National Lung Cancer Audit (NLCA), has proposed a contract extension until after the publication date of the NLCA report on 11 June 2020. This extension has to be mutually agreed by the incumbent audit provider and HQIP are currently in discussions to confirm with them.

Coronavirus: Disease Control

Nick Thomas-Symonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the evidential basis is for Government advice on the longevity of the coronavirus on (a) parcels and (b) other objects.

Jo Churchill: The novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) is a newly identified virus and as such no specific data on environmental survival is available. Public Health England (PHE) advice on the longevity of 2019-nCoV on parcels and other objects has been based on informed knowledge of other related viruses, such as Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus.PHE’s current advice is that the virus does not survive well for long periods outside the body and so it is highly unlikely that 2019-nCoV can be spread through post or packages.This advice and a range of further information can be found online at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/novel-coronavirus-2019-ncov-guidance-to-assist-professionals-in-advising-the-general-public/guidance-to-assist-professionals-in-advising-the-general-public

Colposcopy

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what changes the NHS is making to (a) the management of CIN 2 cervical cell changes and (b) other aspects of colposcopy and programme management.

Jo Churchill: The National Health Service Cervical Screening Programme (NHS CSP) published its programme and colposcopy management guidance on 5 February 2020. This can be viewed at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cervical-screening-programme-and-colposcopy-managementThis includes guidance on policy, management and referral for colposcopy, providing a quality colposcopy clinic as well as colposcopic diagnosis treatment and follow up. In addition, there is a new section on conservative management for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN 2) cell changes and other aspects of colposcopy and programme management. This can be viewed at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cervical-screening-programme-and-colposcopy-management/3-colposcopic-diagnosis-treatment-and-follow-up

Carers

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the Carers' Action Plan 2018-20; and what plans he has to extend that plan.

Caroline Dinenage: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) on 4 February 2020 to Question 8279.

Carers: Young People

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the care for young carers package delivered by GP practices.

Caroline Dinenage: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) on 4 February 2020 to Question 8280.

Non-surgical Cosmetic Procedures: Children

Mr Ranil Jayawardena: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Answer of 21 October 2019 to Question 757 on Non-surgical Cosmetic Procedures: Children; if he will make it his Department's policy to mandate the collection of data on (a) the total number of operations and (b) the number of complaints or mistakes in relation to people under 18 years old having (i) cosmetic fillers and (ii) Botox injections.

Ms Nadine Dorries: NHS X and NHS England are responsible for data collection for NHS services and the Department has no mandate to require data relating to cosmetic interventions is recorded.The Department is exploring the regulation of the cosmetic interventions industry. We are working with stakeholders to explore the options for collecting data around the incidence and impact of consumers seeking treatment through NHS services.

Doctors: Training

Ben Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to (a) improve the equity of funding and support between primary and secondary care services for training doctors and (b) ensure that primary care receives adequate support to train and educate GPs.

Edward Argar: The Department is working with Health Education England and other key stakeholders to review the funding of undergraduate medical training placements in primary and secondary care. The aim of this work is to ensure that the distribution of the available funding supports delivery of high quality placements irrespective of setting and ensures that learners develop the skills and knowledge they require to meet their respective professional competencies.

Ambulance Services: Emergency Calls

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2020 to Question 9655 on Ambulance Services: Emergency Calls, in what format information relating to long wait performance of Ambulance Trusts is held.

Edward Argar: Information is not held in the format requested.

Poultry Meat: Chlorine

Sir Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 28 January 2020 to Question 7113 on Food: Chlorine, whether the Food Standards Agency advises that chlorinated water can be used as a rinsing aid to control process hygiene during the washing of chicken; and if he will make a statement.

Jo Churchill: The Food Standards Agency advice is that no substance other than potable water can be used to remove surface contamination from chicken carcases.Any substance to be used to remove surface contamination from chicken carcases must be specifically approved for that purpose. Chlorine has not been approved for this intended purpose and so cannot be used as a rinsing aid to control process hygiene during washing by food businesses to remove surface contamination from chicken carcases.

Joint Replacements: Waiting Lists

Dr Philippa Whitford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time was by NHS foundation trust for (a) hip replacement and (b) knee replacement surgery in 2018-19.

Edward Argar: A full list of all trusts along with the number of hip and knee replacement procedures and the average waiting time is attached.The data shows the number of procedures between the period April 2018 until March 2019.It should be noted the data does not show individual patients as the same person may have been admitted into a National Health Service hospital on more than one occasion.



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University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust: Standards

Taiwo Owatemi: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of trends in the level of waiting times for (a) children and (b) adults at University Hospital Coventry & Warwickshire since 2010.

Edward Argar: This information is not available in the format requested.

University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust: Recruitment

Taiwo Owatemi: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to increase staffing levels at University Hospital Coventry & Warwickshire.

Edward Argar: The interim NHS People Plan, published on 3 June 2019, puts the workforce at the heart of the National Health Service and will ensure we have the staff needed to deliver high quality care. The final NHS People Plan will be published in early 2020.The Government recently pledged to increase nurse numbers by 50,000 in England over the next five years, and has begun to expand undergraduate medical school places in England by 1,500. The final additional places will have been made available by universities by September 2020.It is the responsibility of NHS trusts to have staffing arrangements in place that deliver safe and effective care. This includes recruiting the staff needed to support these levels and meet local needs

Radioisotopes: Imports

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps the Government is taking to ensure the continued supply of isotope species for medical (a) diagnosis and (b) treatment after the transition period.

Edward Argar: The United Kingdom has now left the European Union and entered the transition period, which will run until 31 December 2020. EU regulations on medicines and medical devices, including medical radioisotopes, will continue to apply to the UK throughout the transition period, during which we will negotiate a new trade agreement with the EU. All necessary measures are in place to ensure that civil nuclear sector can continue to operate in the UK after the end of the transition period. Both the EU and the UK are committed to agreeing a future partnership by the end of 2020 and are working to achieve this. It is in the interests of both the UK and the EU to agree a future partnership that keeps goods flowing, services being provided, and business being done.

Department for International Development

Syria: Overseas Aid

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent steps his Department has taken to help tackle the (a) humanitarian crisis, (b) effects of aerial bombardment, (c)  mass internal displacement during winter conditions and (d) destruction of medical and educational facilities in Idlib, Northern Syria.

Dr Andrew Murrison: We are gravely concerned about escalating Syrian Regime and Russian military action and its humanitarian impact in Idlib. As of 6 February, the UN reports that 586,000 people have been displaced since 1 December 2019 and many more are at risk of imminent further displacement. This financial year DFID has already allocated £103 million to organisations delivering aid cross-border from Turkey primarily into North West Syria, including Idlib. This has helped to provide hundreds of thousands of vulnerable people with food, clean water, shelter, and healthcare including psychosocial support. Given the rapidly deteriorating conditions in North West Syria, we have put options in place to increase our funding further to address the pressing needs of those displaced by the conflict. We have provided funding to response partners including the UN to preposition essential supplies to support innocent families and civilians displaced by conflict and are supporting all our partners to respond to this humanitarian crisis. I visited Turkey on 5-6 February and discussed the crisis in North West Syria with UN agencies and humanitarian NGOs, as well as with Turkish authorities. DFID partners on the ground are working tirelessly to provide aid to those affected by the military offensive. We continue to provide education assistance and support healthcare facilities affected by the recent violence.

Developing Countries: Drugs

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much Official Development Assistance has been allocated to programmes that support operational anti-narcotic services in developing countries.

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many countries receive Official Development Assistance funding for counter-narcotic operations.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The Department for International Development (DFID) does not currently spend Official Development Assistance (ODA) specifically on operational anti-narcotic services, although the Department does spend ODA to tackle the underlying drivers, enablers and consequences associated with serious and organised crime in developing countries Other government departments and agencies with responsibility for law enforcement spend ODA on counter-narcotics programming via the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF), which supports and delivers activity to tackle instability and to prevent conflicts that threaten UK interests. DFID does not keep track of this specific expenditure. Further information on CSSF ODA allocation can be found online at gov.uk.

Developing Countries: Drugs

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps he is taking to ensure the (a) transparency and (b) accountability of Official Development Assistance allocated to counter-narcotics programmes.

Dr Andrew Murrison: Transparency and accountability are important for all DFID aid programmes. DFID has been rated the highest performing bilateral donor and third overall in the 2018 global Aid Transparency Index. DFID’s transparency commitments ensure accountability to the UK taxpayer and the populations our programmes are supporting. Greater transparency also enhances the quality and accessibility of information on value for money of DFID’s programmes. We promote transparency in the wider development sector through our work to support the International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI) and by working with key delivery partners to help them publish data to IATI and link up to DFID’s data so that we can follow the delivery chain. We also encourage our programmes to build local accountability through engagement with programme beneficiaries.

Nigeria: Overseas Aid

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what discussions officials in his Department have had with representatives of the Nigerian Government on Official Development Assistance allocated to that country.

Andrew Stephenson: The UK Government engages regularly on overseas development assistance with representatives of the Nigerian Government at all levels – including Federal, State and Local government administrations. We do this at all stages of our programming, from portfolio discussions, to more granular engagement on design, delivery and lesson learning following the closure of our projects. While no money goes directly to the Government of Nigeria, aid is delivered in partnership with government bodies to ensure it is effective, impactful and in line with national priorities.

Developing Countries: Fossil Fuels

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2020 to Question 9092 on Developing Countries: Climate Change, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of UK Export Finance’s funding for international (a) oil and (b) gas projects on developing country dependency on fossil fuels.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals recognise the importance of affordable clean energy access in order to create economic growth and sustainable development.All governments that are signatories to the Paris Agreement make their own decisions as to how they will reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to meet their Nationally Determined Contributions. DFID provides technical assistance for developing countries to think about their energy choices and achieve a more sustainable, diversified energy mix. UK ODA increasingly supports renewable energy sources – between 2011-12 and 2018-19 UK aid has provided 26 million people with improved access to clean energy and avoided 16 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions. UK Export Finance is not classed as Official Development Assistance.We are continuing to work closely with departments and agencies across Government, to implement the Prime Minister’s announcement on aligning future UK ODA spending with the Paris Agreement.

Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance: Finance

Tommy Sheppard: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if he will (a) increase the funding allocated to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance and (b) support that funding increase by taking steps to strengthen health systems in developing countries.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The UK is proud to be hosting the Gavi Replenishment Conference on 3-4th June, to secure Gavi the funds it needs to immunise 300 million more children and save at least 7 million lives between 2021 and 2025. We recognise the importance of the UK’s funding to Gavi; our £1.44 billion of support to Gavi between 2016-2020 has saved 1.4 million lives from vaccine-preventable diseases in 68 of the world’s poorest countries. The UK’s commitment to Gavi is also central to our work to end preventable deaths of mothers, new-borns and children by 2030. Gavi’s next strategic period is critically important for the UK as we work together to improve intra-country equity and coverage. Immunisation is often a child’s first point of contact with their health service. By extending routine immunisation to reach the underserved, particularly zero-dose children who have never been vaccinated, Gavi is building a foundation for stronger national health systems. The UK will also prioritise ensuring our investment in Gavi is sustainable by supporting countries to effectively transition from Gavi support to increased domestic funding.

South Sudan: Overseas Aid

Harriett Baldwin: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what programmes his Department funds in South Sudan.

Andrew Stephenson: DFID’s largest programme in South Sudan is our Humanitarian Assistance and Resilience programme, which provides life-saving assistance and helps people cope with conflict and climate shocks. Our Building Resilience through Asset Creation and Enhancement programme provides complementary support to help reduce hunger and mitigate conflict in rural areas. DFID also makes a major contribution to the delivery of essential services in South Sudan, through our Girls Education South Sudan programme, which has a particular focus on supporting girls to complete their schooling; and through the DFID-led multi-donor Health Pooled Fund, through which we are supporting over 800 frontline health centres across South Sudan. Finally, DFID is providing modest support to improve conflict sensitivity of donor aid to South Sudan and to pilot sub-national peace-building approaches through our Better Aid in Conflict and our Peace-building Opportunities Fund programming.

Developing Countries: Coronavirus

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps his Department is taking to support countries with weaker health systems following the declaration by the World Health Organisation that coronavirus is a global health emergency.

Dr Andrew Murrison: DFID has stepped up support for developing countries following the World Health (WHO) declaration, through an initial £5 million contribution to WHO’s Emergency Flash Appeal and deploying experts to the WHO’s Regional Office for Africa in the Republic of Congo. In addition, DFID Country Offices are in close contact with country partners in preparing for and responding to an outbreak, and we are working alongside the Department for Health and Social Care and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on further research into the virus. More generally, DFID’s health system strengthening programmes build capability for health security such as disease surveillance and response systems.

Developing Countries: Leprosy

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if he will allocate additional funding to help eradicate leprosy throughout the developing world.

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if he will commit to funding leprosy as a discrete disease within the Neglected tropical diseases programme.

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what plans he has to review the level of funding allocated from the public purse to programmes tackling neglected tropical diseases to ensure the control of leprosy.

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if he will make representations to his counterparts in developing countries where leprosy is still endemic on increasing (a) funding and (b) personnel for the control of leprosy in conjunction with UK aid.

Dr Andrew Murrison: A key aim of the UK’s global health work is to support countries build and maintain strong health systems, and universal health coverage, to tackle all causes of ill health, working in close partnership with national governments. We do not plan to have strategies on specific neglected tropical diseases like leprosy. UK aid is invested in several major neglected tropical disease (NTD) programmes, which are focused on building systems to treat and prevent Guinea worm, schistosomiasis, onchocerciasis, visceral leishmaniasis, lymphatic filariasis, and trachoma. These diseases were identified based on a detailed analysis of the burden of the disease, the UK’s comparative advantage in the area, and the availability and cost effectiveness of treatment and prevention. In September 2019 in Liverpool, Baroness Sugg launched the UK’s flagship £220m NTDs programme. This programme will provide treatment and care for NTDs to 200 million people. We continue to assess the inclusion of leprosy for each country where we operate NTD programming, taking into consideration the disease burden, other financial support available, and whether leprosy activities can be delivered cost-effectively in conjunction with other activities.

Developing Countries: Leprosy

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps his Department is taking to support people in developing countries who have disabilities resulting from leprosy.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The Department is committed to ensuring people with disabilities, including people with leprosy, are routinely and systematically included in UK Aid. We know that we cannot eradicate poverty without reaching people with disabilities. DFID published its first Disability Inclusion Strategy in December 2018. The Strategy clearly sets out DFID’s approach to mainstream disability inclusion across the organisation, with time-bound commitments up until 2023. We also fund the World Health Organization to achieve progress towards their targets on leprosy, and we will continue to support developing countries so that they are better able to detect and treat all causes of ill health, including leprosy.

Department for Education

Further Education: Sixth Form Colleges: Finance

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether sixth form colleges will be eligible for investment proposed by the Government in the further education college estate; and whether those funds will be allocated to colleges that plan to expand their estate to meet demand for places.

Michelle Donelan: Our ambition is to level up the skills of the entire nation and ensure that post-16 education providers are in a great shape to deliver this. We are considering how best to achieve this ambition and will announce details on future capital funding in due course. This will build on the significant uplift in recurrent funding for 16-19 education which we are putting in place for the 2020/21 academic year. Sixth form colleges and 16-19 academies currently receive annual devolved formula capital allocations and either receive the Schools Condition Allocation or bid to the Condition Improvement Fund for larger projects for their capital condition needs.

Free School Meals

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to increase the allowance for free school meals.

Michelle Donelan: As part of the increased funding for schools, announced by my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister, on 30 August 2019, the benefits-related free school meals factor in the national funding formula will be increased in line with inflation.For universal infant free school meals (UIFSM), schools receive funding through a separate grant and the provisional allocations were confirmed for the 2019/20 academic year last June. We have not taken decisions on future rates for UIFSM rates yet.

Disabled Students' Allowances

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will undertake an equality impact assessment of transferring to higher education providers responsibility for (a) administering and (b) setting the level of disabled students' allowance.

Chris Skidmore: ​The levels of Disabled Students’ Allowances available to students are set in the Education (Student Support) Regulations. The department undertakes, and publishes, an Equality Analysis each time it lays amendments to these Regulations. ​No decision has been made to transfer the administration of Disabled Students’ Allowances to Higher Education Providers.

Pupils: Injuries

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment his Department has made of the effect on the health and wellbeing of pupils with brain injury of the change in the level of funding for mentoring those pupils.

Michelle Donelan: No child or young person should be held back from reaching their potential, including those with complex special needs and disabilities such as an Acquired Brain Injury. This is why we have announced £780 million of additional high needs funding for next year (2020-21), which is an increase of 12% compared to this year, bringing the total amount for supporting those with the most complex needs to £7.2 billion. This will be the largest year-on-year increase since the high needs funding block was created in 2013.Every local authority will see an increase in high needs funding of at least 8% per head of population aged 2 to 18. Sunderland will receive £28.4 million in high needs funding. This will provide valuable extra resources so that support is in place to make sure that no pupil or student is left behind.When deciding on the provision to be made for a particular child or young person with a special educational need or disability (SEND), schools and local authorities must have regard to the SEND Code of Practice. The SEND Code of Practice is clear that professionals working with children and young people with SEND should involve the parents or the young person at every stage of planning and reviewing support and take account of their wishes, feelings and perspectives.If a child or young person has an Education, Health and Care plan, the plan should set out exactly what support they should be receiving.Every school is also required to have a policy in place to support pupils with medical conditions and this should be easily accessible for school staff and parents or carers. Governing bodies have a duty to ensure that arrangements are put in place.The SEND system focuses on what works to meet a child’s need rather than the starting point of what condition does this child have.

School Exclusions Review

Edward Timpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what progress he has made in implementing the recommendations of the Timpson Review of school exclusion, published May 2019.

Nick Gibb: The Government is taking forward an ambitious programme of action on behaviour, exclusion and alternative provision (AP). This will respect head teachers’ powers to use exclusion, enable schools to support children at risk of exclusion, and ensure that excluded children continue to receive a good education. The Department will expand AP and improve the quality of the sector so that pupils in AP receive the support and education they need to help them overcome the challenges they are facing, and to prepare them for the next stage of their lives.Further information on the timeframes for this work will be provided in due course.

Educational Exchanges

Ben Lake: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2020 to Question 9128 on Educational Exchanges, if he will publish the publish his proposals for the potential domestic alternatives.

Chris Skidmore: ​As I stated in my answer to question 9128, the UK government is preparing for every eventuality and is considering a wide range of options with regard to the future of international exchange and collaboration in education and training, including a potential domestic alternative.Now is not the time to set out any more detail on the potential alternatives as we prepare to enter negotiations with the EU. If the appropriate time arises, then we will do so.

Schools: Repairs and Maintenance

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the annual maintenance and refurbishment budget is for schools in England; and what plans his Department has to increase that funding to enable schools to invest in zero carbon estates.

Nick Gibb: We have allocated over £7.4 billion in condition funding since 2015 to those responsible for school buildings, to maintain and improve their estate, including £1.4 billion for the financial year 2019-20. We publish these allocations on GOV.UK, and they can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/school-capital-funding.In addition, we deliver major building programmes centrally, including the Priority Schools Building Programme, which is rebuilding or refurbishing more than 500 school buildings in the poorest condition.We support sustainability through our capital funding and programmes, both to reduce carbon and save schools money on energy. Schools can use their condition funding to invest in improving energy efficiency. Furthermore, interest-free loans for energy efficiency projects in schools have been available through the Government backed Salix Schemes. We are also working in partnership with Innovate UK, the UK’s innovation agency, to develop a model of sustainable future schools to deliver an outstanding educational environment using modern methods of construction. More broadly, we are working with colleagues across the Government on carbon reduction and energy efficiency and developing thinking on how future capital programmes can contribute further.A full, multi-year spending review is expected to be conducted in 2020, including capital budgets beyond 2020-21.

Sex and Relationship Education: Training

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the training being provided for schools to help them implement statutory Relationships and Sex Education will be fully LGBT-inclusive.

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the implementation guidance being produced by his Department to support the implementation of statutory Relationships and Sex Education will be fully LGBT-inclusive.

Nick Gibb: The new subjects of relationships education (for primary age pupils), relationships and sex education (for secondary age pupils) and health education (for all pupils in state-funded schools) will become compulsory in September 2020. Many schools are already teaching aspects of these subjects as part of their sex and relationship education provision or personal, social, health and economic education programme. These subjects are designed to foster respect for others and for difference, educating pupils about healthy relationships.The Department is investing in a central programme of support for the new subjects, which is planned to be available to all teachers from spring 2020.This support will be accessed through a new online service and will include an implementation guide, which will accompany the statutory guidance, case studies from early adopter schools, and innovative materials to support staff training. The online training modules will also support teachers in developing inclusive teaching, including LGBT-inclusive approaches. The Department is working with a wide range of schools, teachers and expert organisations, including Stonewall, the NSPCC and teaching unions, to develop this support. There will also be training available for teachers through regional networks, offering opportunities to improve subject knowledge and build confidence.The Department has also been working closely with over 1,600 schools who are acting on a voluntary basis as early adopters of the new subjects, so that we can support their journey, learn lessons and share good practice amongst all schools.The Department will ensure that the central programme and materials supporting implementation of the new subjects are inclusive. We recognise fully the need to disseminate the good practice in teaching about LGBT relationships that is seen in large numbers of our schools.

Special Educational Needs: Nurses

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether it is his policy that schools for students with high levels of special education needs should employ an onsite nurse.

Michelle Donelan: As the department’s guidance ‘supporting pupils at school with medical conditions’ sets out, clinical support for children in schools who have long-term conditions and disabilities remain a Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) commissioning responsibility. CCGs should ensure their commissioning arrangements are adequate to provide the ongoing support essential to the safety of these vulnerable children whilst in school. The guidance is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/supporting-pupils-at-school-with-medical-conditions--3.

Schools: Playing Fields

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of school-owned land has been designated as playing field land in each year since 2010.

Nick Gibb: The Department does not conduct a yearly designation of school land in this manner. The Department considers the circumstances of individual school sites as necessary, and in accordance with the statutory protections and requirements, should any movement, disposal, or change of use of that land occur.

Physical Education: Teachers

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many registered PE teachers have been employed in schools in England in each year since 2010.

Nick Gibb: The head count number of physical education (PE) teachers in service in state funded secondary schools in November 2010 to November 2018 is provided in the table attached.While there is no formal register for PE teachers; for context, information is also shown on the percentage of hours spent teaching PE in each year and the percentage of hours of PE which are taught by a teacher with a relevant post A-Level qualification. A relevant post A-Level qualification is a Level 4 qualification or above in PE, sports science, sports physiology, sports psychology or dance (including ballet).Information for teachers in primary schools is not available.



12390_table
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Corporal Punishment

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether it is his Department's policy to bring forward legislative proposals to ban the use of corporal punishment in the home.

Michelle Donelan: The government has no plans to bring forward legislative proposals to ban parents from using physical punishment to chastise their child.The government does not wish to interfere in how loving families bring up their children. Legislation already exists to ban the beating of children by their parents; the defence of reasonable chastisement can only be used when a parent is accused of assault and not when the charge is actual bodily harm, grievous bodily harm or child cruelty.

Pupil Premium

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent estimate his Department has made of the number of pupils eligible to receive pupil premium funding in (a) Lewisham Deptford, (b) London Borough of Lewisham, (c) London and (d) England.

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent estimate his Department has made of the number of pupils claiming pupil premium funding in (a) Lewisham Deptford, (b) London Borough of Lewisham, (c) London and (d) England.

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent estimate his Department has made of the number of pupils eligible to receive pupil premium funding in (a) Croydon North constituency and (b) London Borough of Croydon.

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent estimate his Department has made of the number of pupils claiming pupil premium funding in (a) Croydon North constituency and (b) London Borough of Croydon.

Nick Gibb: The pupil premium is additional funding that state-funded schools in England receive to help improve the attainment and wider outcomes of pupils from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds; and also of looked after and previously looked after children.Schools are allocated deprivation pupil premium funding based on the number of pupils on roll at the time of the January school census who have been registered for benefits-based free school meals (FSM) at any point in the last six years (known as Ever6 FSM). Schools also receive pupil premium funding at a higher rate (known as pupil premium plus) for pupils who have left local authority care in England and Wales through adoption, a special guardianship order, a child arrangements order or a residence order. Pupils who are in local authority care for one day or more also attract pupil premium plus funding; this is paid to the local authority and managed by the Virtual School Head.The Department publishes information annually showing the number of pupils at school, local authority, Parliamentary constituency and national levels who attract the pupil premium to the schools they attend – this is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-premium-allocations-and-conditions-of-grant-2019-to-2020.The Department does not routinely monitor or publish statistics on the number of pupils who would be eligible for the deprivation pupil premium through having a parent in receipt of benefits that meet the qualifying criteria for FSM, but who do not attract this funding to the schools they attend because they are not registered for FSM.

Apprentices: Taxation

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much and what proportion of Apprenticeship Levy funding was used to fund qualifications at each education level, in each year since 2018.

Michelle Donelan: The apprenticeship levy underpins our reforms to raise apprenticeship quality and supports employers to make long-term, sustainable investments in the skills that they need. Income from the levy is used to fund apprenticeships in all employers (both those who pay the levy and those who do not pay the levy).The table below provides a breakdown for the financial year 2018-19 and shows spending on new apprenticeship starts since May 2017, following the introduction of the apprenticeship levy, in both levy-paying and non-levy paying employers, as well as spending on apprenticeships started before the levy. This is broken down for each level of apprenticeship. 2018-19 financial year spend by apprenticeships level in millions of pounds Level Levy Non- Levy  Pre-Reform Total2£247£236£100£5843£388£253£178£8194£77£17£10£1035£65£11£11£876£53£5£6£647£34£7-£40 Total £864 £528 £305 £1,697 *Participation spend only as per the 2018/2019 Financial Statements*Rounded to the nearest million below the table and below where it says *participation spend only as per the 2018/19 Financial Statements.

Apprentices: Taxation

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much and what proportion of Apprenticeship Levy funding has been allocated to non-levy paying employers in each year since 2018.

Michelle Donelan: HM Treasury allocates a fixed, annual ring-fenced budget for apprenticeships to the Department for Education. The budget is independent of how much levy receipts are each year. The budget is used to fund new apprenticeship starts in levy and non-levy-paying employers and to cover the ongoing training costs of apprentices who are already in training.Funding available for levy-paying employers depends on the employers’ levy contributions and how many of their employees live in England. For employers who do not pay the levy, we allocate funding based on our assessment of demand in the system at the time and overall long-term affordability of the programme. However, actual spending on the apprenticeship programme depends on the choices that employers make about the type and number of apprenticeships that they offer to meet their current and future skills needs.In 2018-19, £809 million (37%) was allocated to non-levy employers from a total budget of £2,181 million for apprenticeships training.In 2019-20, £766 million (32%) was allocated to non-levy employers from a total budget of £2,410 million for apprenticeships training.

Apprentices: Taxation

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much and what proportion of funding for apprenticeships was allocated to SMEs in (a) 2015, (b) 2016 and (c) 2017.

Michelle Donelan: The apprenticeship levy came into force on 6 April 2017, requiring all employers with an annual pay bill of £3 million or more to pay 0.5% of their pay bill to invest in apprenticeship training. Prior to this, all funding allocations were made directly to training providers with no distinction being made as to the size of the employer they subsequently worked with. We are therefore unable to provide a breakdown of funding allocated to small and medium employers (SMEs) in the period requested.

Children: Day Care

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 14 January 2020 to Question 1755  how many of the 530,000 three and four year olds who are ineligible for 30 hours free childcare due to their parents not meeting the income requirement are (a) in single parent families and (b) in families where parents are in couples.

Nick Gibb: In our response to question 1755, the Department for Education estimated that in January 2019, 530,000 3-4 year-olds were ineligible for 30 hours due to one or both of their parents not meeting the minimum income requirements (more than the equivalent to 16 hours a week at national minimum wage or national living wage which is currently £6,800 a year). This included families where one or both parents chose not to or were unable to work. Information about the exact number of children in each category is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.There is support available for parents with childcare costs outside of the free early education entitlements. For example, eligible families can get help with 85% of their childcare costs through Universal Credit, subject to a monthly limit of £646 for one child or £1108 for two or more children. Further information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/universal-credit/what-youll-get. Families can also get help with the costs of childcare from the Tax Free Childcare scheme.

Sixth Form Education: Finance

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans his Department has to introduce a capital expansion fund for sixth form providers.

Michelle Donelan: Our ambition is to level up the skills of the entire nation and ensure that post-16 education providers are in a great shape to deliver this. We are considering how best to achieve this ambition and will announce details on future capital funding in due course. This will build on the significant uplift in recurrent funding for 16-19 education which we are putting in place for the 2020/2021 academic year.

Ministry of Justice

Courts: Social Media

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans he has to change the rules on the use of social media by spectators in criminal court proceedings.

Chris Philp: Rules on the use of social media by members of the public in the criminal courts are governed by the Criminal Practice Directions, issued by the Lord Chief Justice. Although filming, recording or photographing criminal proceedings is strictly prohibited, an individual may apply to the court to request permission to send live text-based communications, for example through social media platforms. Risks to the administration of justice posed by a member of the public using social media during criminal proceedings would be taken into account by the judge when considering an application. The relevant Practice Direction can be found at CPD 6C: http://www.justice.gov.uk/courts/procedure-rules/criminal/docs/2015/crim-practice-directions-I-general-matters-2015.pdf .The government is not aware of proposed amendments to this Direction. In 2017, the Attorney General’s Office released a call for evidence on the risks posed by social media to the administration of justice following concerns about an increase in the number of individuals breaching Contempt of Court laws on social media. The response, published in March 2019, can be found at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/783627/Call_For_Evidence_05.03.2019_v2.pdf. Last year, the government also published its Online Harms White Paper to gather views on the various aspects of the government’s plans for regulation and tackling online harms. It announced that the Law Commission will consider specific recommendations for reform to the criminal law and consultation on this is expected in the Spring.

Terrorism: Sentencing

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people are serving custodial sentences for each category of terror offence in each prison; and what the length of sentence is for each person.

Lucy Frazer: Data detailing the number of people convicted under the Terrorism Act serving custodial sentences is available at Gov.uk. The website contains a detailed breakdown of information about the number of offenders by offence and by sentence length. You can access this information here:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/operation-of-police-powers-under-the-terrorism-act-2000-quarterly-update-to-september-2019

Crimes of Violence: Retail Trade

Meg Hillier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of convictions are were there for violent offences committed against the person (i) on retail premises and (ii) against retail workers in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Chris Philp: The Ministry of Justice publishes information on prosecutions and convictions in England and Wales. This data does not identify the specific context or location of offences, i.e. whether that offence has been carried out on a shop worker or on retail premises.

Probate: Greater London

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2020 to Question 6598, what assessment he has made of the reasons for the increase in complaints his Department has received on the effectiveness of the London Probate Office.

Chris Philp: London Probate Registry is currently delivering performance in line with expected targets. During 2019 performance fell below expected standards and as a result there was a rise in complaints over the delays that users experienced. The delays were caused due to a significant spike in work during in the first quarter of 2019 as well as some IT issues as a result of moving to a new system. These problems have been rectified and the system is now performing well.

Prisons: Industrial Health and Safety

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to improve the effectiveness of health and safety reporting systems for prison staff.

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to ensure that prison staff are kept informed on health and safety matters in their workplace.

Lucy Frazer: The current Health and Safety (H&S) reporting system provides a reliable local and national reporting and recording tool that allows H&S teams to track and manage H&S and Fire incidents and actions arising. It also gives the information to identify trends and share guidance across the estate, including performance reports to governors and senior managers. All staff receive a full H&S induction upon commencing their roles, this includes an explanation of the reporting and investigation process. Local notifications, advice and contingencies are published by Governors to advise staff of immediate risks or to implement controls where necessary. Regular health and safety committee meetings are statutory and held at least quarterly at both prison and national level. Invites to attend these are issued to union representatives. Prison unions also have the opportunity to raise any issues of concern with governors in consultation meetings which occur every month. H&S and Fire risk assessments are shared with union representatives on completion, and are accompanied by appropriate action plans.

Prison Service: Crimes of Violence

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to improve support offered to prison staff after involvement in violent or distressing incidents.

Lucy Frazer: The wellbeing of employees is paramount. All HMPPS staff have access to an occupational health service, and employee assistance programme (EAP). This includes 24 hour, 365 days a year access to signposting and counselling, and trauma support services. Additionally, each prison has a Care Team who support staff through a range of challenging circumstances, including violent or distressing incidents. HMPPS are proactively rolling out a series of workshops in prisons run by EAP on subjects such as ‘mental health and suicide awareness’, and ‘working with trauma in prisons’. Alongside support already in place, a new Mental Health Allies role has been successfully piloted in the MOJ and will be rolled out across HMPPS over the next twelve months. These Allies are trained volunteers who listen, empathise and signpost where appropriate, complementing the work undertaken by other support staff The Government is investing £2.75 billion to make our jails safer - creating 10,000 additional places and stepping up security to cut crime and violence behind bars.

Prison Service: Crimes of Violence and Sexual Offences

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of (a) assaults, (b) serious assaults and (c) sexual assaults on prison staff were carried out against (i) prison officers, (ii) probation officers, (iii) educational staff, (iv) health-care staff and (v) other staff in the 12 months to September in each of the last 10 years.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of assaults on prison staff that included the use of (a) new psychoactive substances and (b) urine and excreta resulted in the hospitalisation of those staff in the 12 months to September in each of the last 10 years.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of assaults on (a) prison officers, (b) probation officers, (c) educational staff, (d) health-care staff and (e) other staff prison staff that included the use of (a) new psychoactive substances and (a) urine resulted in hospitalisation in the 12 months to September in each of the last 10 years.

Lucy Frazer: Violence against our hardworking staff is completely unacceptable and will never be tolerated, which is why we have doubled the maximum prison sentence for anyone who assaults prison officers. Those who commit more serious offences can be imprisoned for far longer.We are giving officers tools like PAVA pepper spray and body-worn cameras to make their jobs safer.More widely, we are spending £100 million to bolster prison security, clamping down on the weapons, drugs and mobile phones that fuel violence and crime behind bars. This will fund tough security, body scanners and phone-blocking technology.The numbers of assaults, serious assaults and sexual assaults on staff are published annually. They are broken down into prison officers and other staff. The most recent go up to December 2018 and can be seen via https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/safety-in-custody-quarterly-update-to-september-2019. The next set of annual data will be published on 30 April.The numbers of prison staff admitted to hospital following the throwing of urine and/or excreta in the last ten calendar years are in the table below. HM Prison & Probation Service does not hold data that would show whether a prisoner was under the influence of psychoactive substances when assaulting a member of staff.20090201422010020150201102016120120201732013020181I regret that, apart from this, to provide figures to the level of detail requested could be done only at disproportionate cost.

Shoplifting: Prosecutions

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prosecutions for shop theft have occurred in each year since 2010.

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have submitted a guilty plea by post for shop theft offences in each year since 2014.

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been imprisoned for shop theft in each year since 2010.

Chris Philp: The Ministry of Justice has published information on prosecutions, convictions and sentencing outcomes of court proceedings in England and Wales up to December 2018. The information requested for PQ 12200 and PQ 12202 can be found using the ‘Outcomes by offence’ data tool at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/802314/outcomes-by-offence-tool-2018.xlsx Using the offence filter select ’46 Theft from Shops’. PQ 12200The number of prosecutions for this offence in each year will be displayed in row 24. PQ 12202The number of individuals sentenced to immediate custody for this offence in each year will be displayed in row 36. The number of people who have submitted a guilty plea by post for shop theft offences in each year since 2014 can be viewed in the accompanying table.



Table 
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Employment Tribunals Service: Females

Mr Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2020 to Question 10459 on Employment Tribunals Service: Females, how many cases of (a) pregnancy and (b) maternity discrimination were recorded by women submitting an Employment Tribunal Claim Form (ET1) in (i) 2010, (ii) 2015, (iii) 2017 and (iv) 2019.

Chris Philp: HM Courts & Tribunals Service does not record data for the jurisdictions for when a claimant has suffered a detriment and/or dismissal on grounds of a) pregnancy or b) maternity discrimination separately. The table below shows the number of ET1 forms submitted by female claimants relating to both pregnancy and maternity discrimination which were accepted by the Employment Tribunal in the years requested: Total MAT1 Jurisdictional complaints received where Gender is captured as Female   JurisdictionNumber of Claims Accepted 2010 22015 22017 2January 19 to September 2019 P MAT1185882511461215 Data Source: COIT 5/2/20201 MAT. Suffer a detriment and/or dismissal on grounds of pregnancy, child birth or maternity2 Calendar year January - DecemberP Provisional data April - September.All data were taken from the Employment Tribunals case management systems and as such is management information that is provisional and subject to change.Gender is not a mandatory field.The above data were generated on a different date to the information contained in quarterly published statistics and were produced specifically for this enquiry.Although care is taken when processing and analysing the data, the details are subject to inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale recording system, and are the best data that are available at the time of publication.

Personal Independence Payment: Appeals

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average waiting time is for a personal independence payment appeal to be heard under the Social Security and Child Support Tribunal service in (a) Wales and (b) England and Wales.

Chris Philp: Information about waiting times for Personal Independence Payment (PIP) appeals to the First-tier Tribunal (Social Security and Child Support) (SSCS) is published at:www.gov.uk/government/collections/tribunals-statistics.

Prison Officers

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many band three to five prison officers had (a) less than three years' experience and (b) three or more years’ service at each high-security institution in each year from 2010.

Lucy Frazer: The number of band 3 to 5 prison officers in each high-security and long-term prison, with less than three years' experience and three or more years’ service, in each year from 2010 are given in the attached table. The huge number of officers we’ve recently recruited inevitably means there are more staff – and more leavers - with under one year’s experience. But we are working hard to retain experienced staff, including by giving them the biggest pay award in a decade last year and the tools they need to do their job safely including PAVA spray and rigid bar handcuffs.



Table
(Excel SpreadSheet, 14.17 KB)

Prisoners' Release: Wycombe

Mr Steve Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether she has made an assessment of the threat to the public from individuals convicted of terrorism offences and subsequently released in Wycombe; and if she will make a statement.

Lucy Frazer: All terrorist offenders released on probation are closely managed by the National Probation Service and HMPPS.Months before a terrorist offender is released, preparations for their management begin through the Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) process. This is led by HMPPS and Police, with input from other partners as required. This process ensures that a set of robust and appropriate licence conditions are drawn up for each offender. These restrictive licence conditions can include: living in approved premises; restrictions on movement and stringent curfews. Failure to adhere to conditions results in enforcement action, and could result in recall to prison.For those subject to a Parole Hearing we will make sure all necessary evidence is made available to the Board and we will make representations in any case where we feel the decision is lacking.Since the attack in Streatham, we have begun a further set of urgent assurance checks of all terrorists on licence to ensure their risk management arrangements remain appropriate following the incident. These reviews are to be led jointly with CT police colleagues.

Hague Convention On the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have applied for the return of their child to the UK from another country under the 1980 Hague Convention in each of the last five years.

Chris Philp: The number of cases where the return application under the 1980 Hague Convention was made through the Central Authority in England and Wales for the years 2014 - 2018 is set out in the table. This information is published by the Royal Courts of Justice at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/829393/2018_RCJ_tables.xlsx. The England and Wales figures for 2019 are expected to be published in July 2020. The numbers of cases reported from Scotland and Northern Ireland in the table have not been published separately. Applications for 1980 Hague Convention returnsCalendar yearEngland and WalesScotlandNorthern Ireland201417030420152203710201623230720172243362018154338

Hague Convention On the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people are waiting for the return of their child to the UK from another country under the 1980 Hague Convention.

Chris Philp: The number of current open cases where the return application under the 1980 Hague Convention was made through, and recorded by, the Central Authorities of England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland is set out in the table.  Open applications for return under the 1980 Hague Convention6 February 2020England and WalesScotlandNorthern Ireland 222262 Figures are not available for cases where the application was made direct to the Central Authority or the court in the country where the child was taken or retained. There is no obligation on parents to inform the Central Authorities when the child is returned, so the figures may include cases which have been resolved by a return without notification to the relevant UK Central Authority.

Probate Service: Liverpool

Mr David Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average time taken is for the issue of a (a) grant of probate and (b) letter of administration by the Liverpool District Probate Registry; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Philp: In January 2020 the figures are as follows: Case typeAverage weeks to issueMedian weeks to issueGrant of Administration13.15.2Grant of Administration with Will annexed10.25Grant of Probate8.84.6 Please note these figures include any time where the case is stopped, and also any time spent waiting for the applicant to submit documentation before the application can be processed.

Department for International Trade

Whisky: Origin Marking

Andrew Bowie: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, if she will make it her Department's policy to protect the Protected Geographical Indicative Status of Scotch Whisky in future trade negotiations.

Conor Burns: The UK government recognises the economic and cultural importance of Geographical Indications (GIs), including Scotch Whisky, and remains committed to ensuring consistent protection.Work is on-going with global trading partners to transition EU free trade agreements and other sectoral agreements including obligations on the recognition and protection of GIs. Department for International Trade officials have been working very closely with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which leads on geographical indications, to ensure that trade negotiations reflect the importance of GIs to the UK.

Overseas Trade: Bangladesh

Mr Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what discussions she had with her counterpart in the Bangladeshi Government on increasing trade between the UK and Bangladesh.

Graham Stuart: The department recognises and promotes the opportunities that Bangladesh presents to UK exporters.My noble Friend Lord Ahmad, Minister of State for the Commonwealth, UN and South Asia, spoke most recently at the reception to mark the launch of the first international Bangladesh Taka-denominated “Bangla” bonds on the London Stock Exchange, highlighting opportunities and benefits of furthering mutual work on UK-Bangladesh trade promotion.Significant discussions on trade promotion are also held at the annual UK-Bangladesh Strategic Dialogue, most recently led by the Bangladesh Foreign Secretary MD Shahidul Haque and the Permanent Under-Secretary and Head of the Diplomatic Service at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Sir Simon McDonald.

Coal: Export Credit Guarantees

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2020 to Question 9090 on Fossil Fuels: Export Credit Guarantees, what estimate she has made of the amount of Government investment in coal projects through UK Export Finance in each year since 2015.

Conor Burns: I refer the Hon. Member for Dulwich and West Norwood to the answer I gave to the Hon. Member for Brighton Pavilion on 23 January 2020, UIN: 5385To clarify, UK Export Finance (UKEF) does not invest equity or provide funding into projects. The support provided by the Department is in the form of financing, insurance or guarantees for loans.

Iron and Steel: USA

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, if she will make it her policy to oppose tariffs on (a) steel and (b) rolled steel in a potential future trade deal with the US.

Conor Burns: Existing anti-dumping or countervailing measures against specific goods will not be covered by the UK government’s negotiations with the US over a future trade agreement. Such measures are imposed following independent investigations which are not addressed through bilateral trade deal negotiations.

Free Zones

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, if she will hold discussions on free ports with all ports in the UK which express an interest in such developments.

Graham Stuart: The Government is in the process of engaging with a range of industry, business and academic experts across the UK to develop our future Freeport model. Specific locations for Freeports will be chosen according to a fair and transparent bidding process and we are keen to ensure that we hear from all ports who are interested in becoming a Freeport. We recognise the importance of working with the Devolved Administrations to make sure that Freeports are a UK-wide offer, not just one for English ports.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

High Rise Flats: Insulation

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the (a) relative fire risk and (b) consequent need for waking watches in high-rise buildings with unsafe cladding containing (i) ACM and (ii) HPL.

Esther McVey: The Department recently published consolidated advice from the Independent Expert Advisory Panel, titled ‘Building safety advice for building owners, including fire doors’ , which encompasses advice to building owners on unsafe external wall systems (including short-term interim mitigating measures). The advice can be found at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/building-safety-advice-for-building-owners-including-fire-doors.The Department has also published a call for evidence on fire safety risk prioritisation in existing buildings, which ends on 17 February 2020 and can be found at: www.gov.uk/government/consultations/fire-safety-risk-prioritisation-in-existing-buildings-a-call-for-evidence.

Social Rented Housing: Fire Prevention

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Regulator of Social Housing in ensuring the fire safety of homes (a) owned and (b) managed by registered providers of social housing.

Esther McVey: The Regulator of Social Housing sets standards that registered providers are required to meet - including that a landlord meets all applicable statutory requirements that provide for the health and safety of the occupants of their homes. Failure to comply with a standard may result in the regulator publishing a Regulatory Judgement or a Regulatory Notice depending on the nature of the failing.In relation to fire safety, there was one Regulatory Notice against a housing association in 2017/18. There were five Regulatory Notices in 2018/19 (four housing associations and a local authority). In 2019/20 there has been 12 Regulatory Notices to date (five housing associations and seven local authorities).The Regulator is operationally independent, but provides regular assurance to the department that its fundamental objectives are being delivered efficiently and effectively.

Housing: Fire Prevention

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many complaints have been (a) made and (b) upheld to the Housing Ombudsman in relation to fire safety since June 2017.

Esther McVey: Since June 2017 the Housing Ombudsman received 28 complaints in relation to “Fire Safety” which were within the Ombudsman’s formal remit for investigation.A further one complaint received prior to 2017 was determined during this period. Of those, 6 were upheld – where the Ombudsman found maladministration, partial maladministration or mediated a settlement agreed by both parties.

Planning Permission: Biodiversity

Mr Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans his Department has to ensure that planning guidance issued by her Department takes into account the need to preserve biodiversity.

Esther McVey: The Government’s support for biodiversity is made clear in the National Planning Policy Framework and accompanying planning guidance. The Framework says that to protect and enhance biodiversity, planning policies and decisions should minimise impacts on and provide net gains for biodiversity, and it contains a number of policies in support of this. The accompanying planning guidance was updated on 21 July 2019 and provides advice on how development can achieve biodiversity net gains. The Environment Bill will take biodiversity net gain a stage further by making it a mandatory requirement for development.

Housing: Disability

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what progress he has made on his Department's consultation on accessible housing standards.

Esther McVey: Government will consult shortly on options of how to raise standards of accessibility in new homes. The consultation will include options for making higher accessibility standards mandatory.

Housing: Disability

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to improve the provision of wheelchair accessible housing.

Esther McVey: Government will consult shortly on options of how to raise standards of accessibility in new homes. The consultation will ask for views on the standard M4(3) for new wheelchair user housing and the level of M4(3) provision in local plan policies.

Leasehold: Reform

Jeff Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when his Department plans to respond to the proposals for leasehold reform published by the Law Commission on 9 January 2020.

Esther McVey: The Government is looking to standardise the enfranchisement process and asked the Law Commission to review current arrangements to make them easier, faster, fairer and cheaper. The Law Commission has now published its first report to Government, on the valuation aspects of enfranchisement. The report, which follows a consultation by the Law Commission, sets out a number of options relating to valuation, including purchasing a freehold and extending the lease of a house or flat. The Law Commission will report on the remaining aspects of enfranchisement later in the spring.  The Government will carefully consider the proposals outlined in the Law Commission’s report and set out its preferred way forward in due course.

Housing: Construction

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies on housing developments of the Campaign to Protect Rural England report titled, A housing design audit for England, published on 21 January 2020.

Esther McVey: The Department welcomes the report and the research team provided evidence to the Building Better, Building Beautiful Commission and that their findings have informed the 45 recommendations from the commission. The Government will respond to in due course.

Planning Permission

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the proposed White Paper on planning will include guidance on the benefits of designing (a) higher density developments and (b) highways that are sensitive to their surroundings.

Esther McVey: Guidance on design issues is not within the remit of the Planning White Paper. The purpose of the White Paper will be to make the planning process clearer, more accessible and more certain for all users, including homeowners and small businesses. It will also address resourcing and performance in Planning Departments. Designing at higher densities and making effective use of land, and the creation of highways that take into account place-making, are covered by our National Planning Policy Framework. These are also referenced within our recently published National Design Guide and are intended to form part of the forthcoming National Model Design Code.

Planning Permission

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that local planning authorities reject planning applications which do not comply with the guidance set out in (a) the National Design Guide and (b) paragraph 130 of the National Planning Policy Framework.

Esther McVey: Within the National Planning Policy Framework, and the National Design Guide, the importance of design quality and how it can be achieved was emphasised. Steps we have taken to ensure this is reflected in decision making include convening the Building Better, Building Beautiful Commission, which published its final report and recommendations on 30 January and which we will respond to in due course. We have also committed to producing the National Model Design Code this year which will set detailed standards for key elements of successful design.

Buildings: Insulation

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, which types of non-ACM cladding systems have failed the combustibility test.

Esther McVey: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Buildings: Insulation

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether it remains his policy that the cost of removing unsafe cladding on buildings should be borne by the freehold owners of those properties and not by leaseholders.

Esther McVey: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Devolution: England

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the timetable is for the publication of the White Paper on English devolution.

Jake Berry: The manifesto committed to publishing an English Devolution White Paper in 2020. The Government is committed to empowering local places to drive local economic growth. The Queen’s Speech reconfirmed the Government’s commitment to an English Devolution White Paper, further details on which will be made available in due course.

Buildings: Insulation

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2020 to Question 9039 on Buildings: Insulation, whether (a) he and (b) his Ministers have met any groups of affected leaseholders.

Esther McVey: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Recreation Spaces

Taiwo Owatemi: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government,  what steps he is taking to protect green spaces from development.

Esther McVey: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Supported Housing: Older People

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will increase funding to create additional capacity in local authority supported housing facilities for elderly people.

Luke Hall: The Government values the vital role that supported and sheltered housing plays in the lives of many older people with support needs across the country. We are committed to ensuring that we have a sustainable supported housing sector and to boosting supply. We have abolished the Housing Revenue Account borrowing cap to support councils to deliver more council housing to address local need and circumstances, including supported and sheltered housing. We are also reviewing local housing support services across England to get a better understanding of how housing and support services are working together.

Leasehold

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the report entitled Tackling unfair practices in the leasehold market: Summary of consultation responses and Government response, published in December 2017, what plans he has has to bring forward legislative proposals to amend section 121 of the Law of Property Act 1925.

Esther McVey: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Freehold

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the report entitled Tackling unfair practices in the leasehold market: Summary of consultation responses and Government response, published in December 2017, what plans he has has to bring forward legislative proposals to regulate rent charges paid by freeholders.

Esther McVey: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Landlords: Registration

Sir Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many landlords in England are registered on the Government's rogue landlord database; and what his estimate is of the number of rogue landlords who are not yet registered; and if he will make a statement.

Esther McVey: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Multiple Occupation: Licensing

Sir Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many houses in multiple occupation are licensed by local authorities; and what estimate he has made of the  number of unlicensed houses in multiple occupation in England; and if he will make a statement.

Esther McVey: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Ministry of Defence

Porton Down: Animal Experiments

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many experiments were conducted on animals by the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory on behalf of his Department in each of the last 10 years.

James Heappey: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 06 February 2020.The correct answer should have been:

The Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) makes has an active programme to reduce and replace animal experiments and in recent years we have developed a number of alternative methods for testing that do not require animals. We will continue to look for alternatives so that we minimise our use of animals. Animal experiments are regulated by the UK Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (ASPA). Under ASPA, “animal experiments” are referred to as “scientific procedures”. In accordance with ASPA, Dstl makes an annual report of scientific procedures to the Home Office. The numbers of scientific procedures using animals conducted at Dstl Porton Down between 2009 and 2015 have been previously reported to the House as in the table below: Year Total20098,45220109,43820119,72220128,83020136,46120144,12420153,249For the years 2016 to 2018, the numbers of procedures are in the table below. Data for 2019 will be available later this year. Year Total20162,74720173,90520181,941

James Heappey: The Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) makes has an active programme to reduce and replace animal experiments and in recent years we have developed a number of alternative methods for testing that do not require animals. We will continue to look for alternatives so that we minimise our use of animals. Animal experiments are regulated by the UK Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (ASPA). Under ASPA, “animal experiments” are referred to as “scientific procedures”. In accordance with ASPA, Dstl makes an annual report of scientific procedures to the Home Office. The numbers of scientific procedures using animals conducted at Dstl Porton Down between 2009 and 2015 have been previously reported to the House as in the table below: Year Total20098,45220109,43820119,72220128,83020136,46120144,12420153,249For the years 2016 to 2018, the numbers of procedures are in the table below. Data for 2019 will be available later this year. Year Total20162,74720173,90520181,941

Strategic Defence and Security Review: Trade Unions

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 27 January 2020 to Question 6112, whether his Department is consulting with trade unions representing staff of his Department on the Government's Strategic Defence and Security Review.

Mr Ben Wallace: The Integrated Defence, Security and Foreign Policy review, announced by the Prime Minister in December, promises to be the deepest review of Britain's security, defence and foreign policy since the end of the Cold War. As such, we intend to consult with all necessary stakeholders throughout the process, including with Trade Unions where appropriate.

RAF Scampton: Land

Sir Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he plans to publish the results of the Land Quality Assessment for RAF Scampton.

Johnny Mercer: The information requested will be placed in the Library of the House.

Defence: Cross Border Cooperation

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he plans to begin discussions with EU member states on co-operation in relation to defence capabilities development.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: The UK regularly collaborates with international partners and will continue to explore the opportunity to work with partners in Europe and beyond on joint capability programmes.

International Military Services: Legal Costs

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how the International Military Services Ltd payment in respect of the court case in 2001 was accounted for in his Department’s financial statements of that year.

James Heappey: The Ministry of Defence's (MOD) 2001 Annual Report and Accounts includes IMS Ltd under section 9.1 Other Investments, against a sum of 19,999,999 non-preferential shares valued at £1 each. Note 9.3 makes it clear that IMS Ltd ceased trading on 31 July 1991 and will be liquidated following the settlement of outstanding contracts. MOD has written down the value of the investment to nil.

International Military Services: Legal Costs

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what information his Department holds on how much money has been returned in respect of the court case in 2001 to International Military Services Ltd in the 2019-2020 financial year.

James Heappey: Following the judgment by Mr Justice Phillips in July 2019 an order was issued that the Court Funds Office pay to IMS Ltd the amount of £45,425,358.78. This money, less any tax liability, will be transferred to the Ministry of Defence.

Armed Forces

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent steps he has taken to ensure that people who leave the armed forces are prepared for civilian life.

Johnny Mercer: As part of the ten-year vision articulated in the Strategy for our Veterans, the Ministry of Defence introduced a 'Defence Holistic Transition' policy in October 2019. 'Defence Transition Services' (DTS) was established at the same time, to support those Service leavers who face the greatest challenges to making a successful transition to civilian life. The full-spectrum service is available to all Service leavers exiting the Armed Forces and is based on the needs of the individual, providing the specific support they may need and interventions to ensure issues are resolved. This support extends for two years after discharge and longer if necessary.All Regular Service personnel leaving the Armed Forces are provided with employment support and training delivered through the Career Transition Partnership (CTP). Service personnel leaving the Regular Armed Forces are entitled to access CTP resettlement services two years prior to their discharge date and for two years post-discharge.

Veterans: General Practitioners

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has had recent discussions with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on advice issued by NHS England to GPs on veterans' needs; and if he will make a statement.

Johnny Mercer: Ministry of Defence (MOD) Ministers and officials have regular meetings with their counterparts in the Department for Health and Social Care and NHS England to ensure that the health needs of veterans in England are properly considered. All Service leavers are encouraged to register with an NHS GP wherever they settle in England or the Devolved Administrations to ensure that they have access to a doctor when they need it and that their veteran status is recorded in their patient notes. This ensures that they can access veterans’ bespoke health services provided by the NHS and access priority treatment in England, Scotland and Wales for conditions which relate to their time in service, subject to clinical need. The MOD welcomes the work being taken forward by the NHS and the Royal College of General Practitioners to ensure that veterans are aware of the services available to them from the NHS and that GPs are aware of veterans’ needs and other sources of support that are available.

Armed Forces: Commonwealth

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions he has had with the Home Secretary on ensuring that commonwealth personnel are able to bring family members to the UK.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) continues to work very closely with the Home Office regarding the implications of the Minimum Income Requirement and visa costs for all Service personnel and their families, including those we have recruited from the Commonwealth. The MOD has previously articulated the specific circumstances which Service personnel from outside the UK, including the Commonwealth, face when choosing to serve our country and what this potentially means for family life. It is, however, a complex policy area with potentially wide-ranging ramifications.

Armed Forces: Brecon Beacons National Park

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his policy is on the use of Brecon Beacons national park for military training.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: It is Ministry of Defence (MOD) policy to prioritise training on property that is owned, leased or licensed by the MOD.Training on Private Land (TOPL) is the alternative solution when the MOD is unable to allocate suitable training facilities on the MOD training estate and the proposed activities are compatible with private land uses.TOPL at the Brecon Beacons is used by several units including the Infantry Battle School. The majority of training is for navigation and endurance covering large distances whilst assessing individuals map reading ability.

Ministers: Military Aircraft

Tommy Sheppard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, on how many occasions Ministers have used armed services transport in the last 12 months, by department; and what the cost has been of military flights taken by Ministers in the last 12 months.

Johnny Mercer: I refer the hon. Member to the Answer I gave on 4 February 2019 to Question 10394 to the hon. Member for Edinburgh North and Leith (Deidre Brock).



10394 - Military Aircraft: Ministers
(Word Document, 21.95 KB)

Ministers: Military Aircraft

Tommy Sheppard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will publish the protocol for armed services facilities being used for Ministerial transport; and whether he plans to review that protocol.

Johnny Mercer: The information requested is contained in Defence Instruction and Notice 2018DIN03-002, a copy of which will be placed in the Library of the House. These instructions were issued in 2018. We expect to review them shortly.

Submarine Delivery Agency: Recruitment

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to increase staff levels at the Submarine Delivery Agency.

James Heappey: Throughout 2018-19 we have made steady recruitment progress to bolster our people capabilities in the Submarine Delivery Agency (SDA) resulting in a net increase to our core workforce by around 11% by April 2019. We will continue to identify skills gaps and prioritise effectively by both sourcing existing skilled staff from within the Ministry of Defence and by using the SDA's authority and freedoms to recruit and retain the best people to enhance the organisation's competencies and capability.

RAF Menwith Hill: Qassem Soleimani

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether RAF Menwith Hill had a role in the drone programme that assassinated Qasem Soleimani.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: In accordance with long standing policy we do not comment on the details of the operations carried out at RAF Menwith Hill in providing intelligence support.

International Military Services

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2020 to Question 8399 on Iran: International Military Services, if he will place in the Library a copy of his Department's most recent instructions to the legal team of IMS Ltd.

James Heappey: Any such instructions would commonly be covered by litigation privilege in the context of ongoing legal proceedings.

Maritime Patrol Aircraft: Procurement

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate his Department has made of the number of (a) hardware and (b) software components procured from UK-based companies in the new P-8 Poseidon aircraft.

James Heappey: Boeing has estimated that around 5% of every P-8 aircraft produced globally is UK content.

Maritime Patrol Aircraft: Procurement

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he plans to increase the number of newly-purchased P-8 Poseidon aircraft to 16.

James Heappey: The Government has committed to undertake an Integrated Foreign Policy, Security and Defence Review which will consider all aspects of our Defence and security capabilities.

Maritime Patrol Aircraft: Sonar

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which sonobuoys will be integrated into the nine new P-8 aircraft; and whether those sonobuoys will be supplied by a UK-based company.

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which torpedoes will be integrated into the new P-8 aircraft; and whether those torpedoes will be manufactured by a UK-based company.

James Heappey: The RAF P-8A Poseidon aircraft is being delivered in the same configuration as that operated by the US Navy. This was an important consideration in the investment decision for the project as it delivers economies of scale from being part of a larger programme and helps ensure interoperability with close allies. Consequently, RAF aircraft will be equipped with the same Mk 54 torpedoes and range of sonobuoys as US Navy aircraft. These are not manufactured by UK-based companies.

Maritime Patrol Aircraft: Repairs and Maintenance

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, at which military location the nine new P-8 aircraft will undergo maintenance and repair.

James Heappey: The Main Operating Base for the RAF P-8A Poseidon fleet will be RAF Lossiemouth, where a new Strategic Facility designed to accommodate everyone who operates and supports the aircraft is being constructed. The building includes a three-bay hangar where the RAF Poseidon Line Squadron will maintain the aircraft.

Department for Work and Pensions

Social Security Benefits: Northumberland

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much has been paid in working-age benefits to claimants in (a) Wansbeck constituency and (b) postcode areas (i) NE61, (ii) NE62, (iii) NE63, (iv) NE64 and (v) NE22 in each of the last 10 years.

Mims Davies: Information relating to payments of Working Age Benefits to claimants in Wansbeck Constituency can been sourced from DWP’s Published Benefit expenditure by Parliamentary Constituency 2018/19. This can be found by following the URL link below:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/benefit-expenditure-and-caseload-tables-2019 DWP are unable to split out the specific amount that’s been paid for Working Age Benefits only as the Housing Benefit award is paid as a whole, rather than by different elements. Therefore we are unable to give the requested payments for Working Age benefits only by constituency, the information requested could only be made available at a disproportionate cost. Information in respect of Working Age Benefits to claimants in Wansbeck Constituency by postcode area is not provided. The information requested could only be made available at a disproportionate cost.

Bereavement Support Payment

Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Work and Pensions Select Committee report on Bereaved Support Payments, published on 22 October 2019, what the expected publication date is of the Government response to that report.

Mims Davies: We will submit our response to the Work and Pensions Select Committee report on Bereavement Support Payment once the committee is fully up and running. Any decision on publication will be for the Committee to make.

Universal Credit

Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether funding is available to existing universal credit claimants to pay for childcare so that they are not required to pay up front and claim the money back.

Will Quince: The Universal Credit childcare policy aligns with the wider government childcare offer, which includes free childcare hours and tax free childcare. Claimants can utilise both the free childcare entitlement and Universal Credit childcare costs in conjunction with each other. This offer means that reasonable childcare costs should not form a barrier to work. The Government is committed to supporting parents with moving into work and, as part of this, Universal Credit pays up to 85% of childcare costs, compared to 70% in legacy benefits. The Flexible Support Fund (FSF) can pay up to 100% of the upfront childcare costs (subject to payment limits) that the claimant incurs before starting work and receiving their first wage. Through FSF, work coaches can support claimants with barriers that may prevent them from moving into employment, such as childcare or travel costs. Each case is considered carefully on its own merits with financial help available in advance to eligible claimants. Universal Credit claimants are able to upload digital copies of their childcare cost receipts or invoices through their online Universal Credit account. In October 2019, the Department introduced changes to give parents longer to report their childcare costs. Childcare costs can be claimed in the same assessment period they were paid, or by the end of the following assessment period.

Carers: Unpaid Work

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessments he has made of the adequacy of financial support available from the public purse for unpaid carers.

Justin Tomlinson: This Government recognises and values the vital contribution made by carers in supporting some of the most vulnerable in society.The Government is supporting carers in a number of ways, including through the benefit system. The rate of Carer’s Allowance, the main social security benefit for carers, has increased from £53.90 in 2010 to £66.15 a week, meaning an additional £635 a year for carers since 2010. Subject to Parliamentary approval, Carer’s Allowance will further increase to £67.25 a week in April 2020. By 2023/24, we are forecast to spend £3.7 billion a year on Carer’s Allowance. The Government also provides targeted financial support for carers on low incomes through means-tested benefits, including Pension Credit and Universal Credit. Subject to Parliamentary approval, in April 2020, the associated carer premia in means-tested benefits will increase from £36.85 to £37.50 a week; and the carer element in Universal Credit will increase from £160.20 to £162.92 per monthly assessment period. These amounts recognise the additional contribution and responsibilities associated with caring and mean that these benefits can be paid to carers at a higher rate than those without caring responsibilities. A table of proposed benefit rates for 2020/2021 was deposited in the House libraries on 29 November 2019. https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/business-papers/commons/deposited-papers/

Social Security Benefits: Medical Examinations

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of amending her Department's requirements on the use of audio recording equipment to make it easier for claimants to record benefits assessment interviews.

Justin Tomlinson: DWP remains committed to improving the assessment process, especially around trust and transparency. We are currently developing an approach to provide consistency for claimants across audio recording of Work Capability Assessments and PIP assessments.

Children: Maintenance

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the value is of child maintenance debts her Department (a) has written off and (b) estimates will be written off in (i) Scotland and (ii) the UK during the transition from the Child Support Agency to the Child Maintenance Service.

Mims Davies: (a) The total amount written off for cases on Child Support Agency systems, as of September 2019, is published in Table 9.2 of the CSA QSS and is £1,480.7m. The statistics in Table 9.2 do not include CSA cases on the CMS system because representation activity on these cases started later than on the CSA system and the data we need to report on them requires more quality assurance. We aim to publish this information in the December 2019 release which is due to be published in Spring 2020.(b) Table 9.2 provides statistics at a GB level, and the regional split of child maintenance debt that is written off isn’t published. To provide this information for Scotland would require us to link together several complex datasets and it would incur disproportionate cost. The estimate of what will be written off was included in The CSA Historic Arrears business case. Page 25 refers and the figure included was £3.2bn https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/667033/child-maintenance-compliance-arrears-consultation.pdf

Housing Benefit: Foster Care

Sarah Owen: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many foster carers are subject to the spare room subsidy in England and Wales.

Will Quince: The Removal of the Spare Subsidy (RSRS) policy allows one additional bedroom for approved foster carers, who have a child placed with them or are between placements. This is provided the period in which they don’t have a child or young person placed with them does not exceed 12 months. Information on how many foster cares are subject to the spare room subsidy in England and Wales is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Pension Credit

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the potential incentive for mixed-aged couples to live alone as a result of the changes to pension credit entitlement which came into force in May 2019.

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what additional financial support her Department provides to mixed-age couples as a result of the changes to pension credit entitlement which came into force in May 2019.

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she has put in place additional financial support for mixed-age pensioners as a result of the May 2019 changes to pension credit entitlement for mixed-aged couples; and if she will make a statement.

Guy Opperman: Pension Credit is intended to provide long term support for people who have permanently retired from the labour market on grounds of age. The Government does not believe it is right that different labour market conditions should apply to people below State Pension age based on the age of their partner. The younger partner in a mixed age couple should have the same incentives to work and save for their own retirement as other people of the same age. Unlike Pension Credit, which in most cases allows couples to retain only £10 a week of earned income, Universal Credit provides clear incentives for people to find and progress in work. The younger partner in a mixed age couple claiming Universal Credit will get the personalised support provided by Work Coaches to help them find and progress in work where appropriate. If the younger partner is unable to work because of disability or caring requirements, additional amounts may be payable and conditionality requirements adjusted. No work-related requirements will be applied to the older partner and there is no effect on entitlement to, or ability to receive, a State Pension. This change does not apply to couples already claiming Pension Credit and/or Housing Benefit for pensioners on 14 May 2019 for as long as they remain entitled to either benefit. In means-tested benefits, couples in a household are treated and assessed as a single unit rather than on an individual basis. The rate for a couple is lower than the rates would be for two single people to take account of lower aggregate living expenses for a couple. There is no evidence from elsewhere in the tax-benefit system that this leads to couples separating. In developing the policy, it was judged that the strategic objective of maintaining contact with the labour market and incentives to save for retirement outweighed the risk of genuine separation, given this lack of evidence.

Pension Credit

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department has taken to increase the number of people claiming pension credit in the last 12 months; and what progress she has made in increasing that number.

Guy Opperman: 1.6 Million people are already claiming some £5.4 billion in pension Credit. The Government wants to make sure that all pensioners eligible can claim the Pension Credit to which they are rightly entitled. That is why from the 10 February we are launching a nationwide campaign to raise awareness of Pension Credit and encourage those over State Pension age to check whether they’re eligible. The campaign, which will run for 12 weeks, includes a short, animated video that will be shown in GP waiting rooms and in Post Offices. It will also be shown to Facebook users over State Pension Age and be supported by messaging on social media. We regularly work with our stakeholders to help spread the key messages from the campaign because we know that often the best ways to reach eligible pensioners is through trusted stakeholders working in the community. The Pension Credit toolkit is being updated with the campaign materials to supplement the resources it already contains for those working with pensioners, such as guides to Pension Credit and guidance designed to help older people understand how they could get Pension Credit. The toolkit is designed to help organisations support someone applying for Pension Credit as well as provide ideas for encouraging take-up. It can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pension-credit-toolkit The Department for Work and Pensions continues to use a wide range of channels including information on www.gov.uk, in leaflets and by telephone to communicate information about benefits including Pension Credit to potential claimants. We target activity on engaging with people who may be eligible to benefits at pivotal stages, such as when they claim State Pension or Attendance Allowance or report a change in their circumstances which may mean that they could be eligible for Pension Credit. In addition, the Pension Credit calculator https://www.gov.uk/pension-credit-calculator enables potential claimants to check if they are likely to be eligible and get an estimate of what they may receive. The Department for Work and Pensions publishes an annual report detailing latest available statistics regarding the estimated take-up of Pension Credit and other income-related benefits.The latest version can be found here:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/income-related-benefits-estimates-of-take-up-financial-year-2016-to-2017The next report containing 2017/18 data is currently due to be published at the end of February 2020.

Personal Independence Payment: Vulnerable Adults

Kirsten Oswald: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the personal independence payment assessment process in (a) identifying the most vulnerable applicants and (b) ensuring that those applicants receive adequate support.

Justin Tomlinson: DWP are committed to providing a quality, sensitive and respectful service to everyone. In advance of attending a face-to-face consultation, individuals will be given the opportunity to alert their assessment provider of any additional requirements they may have and the providers will meet any such reasonable requests. Individuals identified as being vulnerable, including having mental health or learning disabilities, can access additional support at any point in the claim or assessment process, for example help filling in the form or the questionnaire and additional protections for failing to return the questionnaire or for failing to attend a face-to-face assessment. Companions are encouraged to attend and can play an active role in assessments. This can be particularly helpful for individuals with mental, cognitive or intellectual impairments who may not be able to provide an accurate account of their condition due to a lack of understanding or unrealistic expectations of their ability.

Universal Credit

Vicky Ford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many universal credit claimants have moved into employment since the roll out-of universal credit in each year for which figures are available.

Will Quince: The latest caseload data shows Universal Credit is supporting 2.8 million claimants across the country to more easily start work and access smoother incentives, such as the work allowance and taper, to increase hours. We have scrapped the cliff edges and complicated hours’ rules of the legacy benefit system to ensure claimants have flexibility to access the opportunities offered in the labour market. There are a record number of people in work at 32.9 million – up by over 3.8 million since 2010. During August 2019 and September 2019, the latest information available, just over 200,000 Universal Credit claimants have succeeded in getting into jobs. Monthly information surrounding the volumes of Universal Credit claimants who have moved into work is shown in the table below. -2016/172017/182018/192019/20April3205,15025,00079,900May5505,90026,80087,400June6506,31029,20081,600July1,0106,50031,60087,800August1,2907,63038,90094,200September1,89010,10047,300106,300October2,15010,80052,600N/ANovember2,60011,70059,900N/ADecember2,3209,60044,300N/AJanuary3,23014,70061,400N/AFebruary3,94016,60068,800N/AMarch5,07022,10084,200N/A Notes:1. Figures are for Universal Credit Full Service only2. Figures are at household level. In some cases both members of a household may have entered work in the same month, but only one job entry would be counted in our response.3. Figures are based upon situations when a household reports no earnings in one Assessment Period but then has earnings in the next.4. Self-employed jobs are not included in the table.5. Figures also include instances of a household moving out of work and at a later date moving back into work.

Buildings: Disability

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the provisions of the Equality Act 2010 in relation to levels of disabled access to Centres for Disability Assessments.

Justin Tomlinson: The Department takes our responsibility to ensure all our customers have access to our services without disadvantage very seriously. Every DWP office has been assessed to ensure that we are compliant with the requirements of the Equality Act 2010. Where suitable physical adaptations to buildings are not possible, the Department provides an alternative method of delivering our services where we are made aware that a customer has potential access issues, such as an appointment would be rearranged at a ground floor location or by a home visit.

Employment and Support Allowance

Peter Grant: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department takes to ensure that claimants who are found to be eligible for employment support allowance but don't receive payments due to their household income, are encouraged to continue to apply to make sure that they receive their National Insurance contributions.

Justin Tomlinson: Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) the “new style” benefit is solely based on the claimant’s national insurance (NI) contributions. The income-related strands of the benefit have been removed. This means that New Style ESA (NS ESA) can be paid alongside Universal Credit (UC), where appropriate. Claimants who don’t qualify for UC, due to the level of their household income, might still qualify for NS ESA. If eligible for NS ESA, a claimant will be awarded a Class 1 NI credit for each complete benefit week that the benefit is in payment. A benefit week runs from Sunday to Saturday. Where there is no entitlement to NS ESA, a person may still be entitled to NI credits provided they continue to meet the eligibility conditions. Information about claiming NI credits is included in the decision letter sent to the claimant informing them that they are not entitled to ESA. It is also available on Gov.UK.

Disability Living Allowance: Older People

Mr Steve Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make it her policy to exempt people of state pension age in receipt of disability living allowance from further reassessments for that allowance; and if she will make a statement.

Justin Tomlinson: Everyone who was in receipt of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) on 8 April 2013 and was under the age of 65 will be invited to claim Personal Independence Payment (PIP), even if they are over the age of 65 when invited to claim. We have no plans to change these rules as we complete reassessment activity for adult DLA recipients. DLA recipients who were 65 or over on 8 April 2013 will not be invited to claim PIP and will remain on DLA for as long as the entitlement conditions remain satisfied.

Children: Maintenance

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, under what circumstances a deduction of earnings order under the Child Maintenance Service is no longer appropriate.

Mims Davies: A Deduction from Earnings Order (DEO) is no longer appropriate when there has been a change in circumstances, such as where a business stops trading and / or a paying parent has left employment and no details are held for a new employer. A DEO can also be cancelled in circumstances where it has been successfully applied for six months and the paying parent has requested to pay maintenance via an alternative channel.

Children: Maintenance

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will extend the powers that are available to the Child Maintenance Service for the collection of child maintenance.

Mims Davies: Since 2018 we have introduced new collection and enforcement powers, including disqualifying non-compliant parents from holding a UK passport. We will continue to monitor the effectiveness of the new powers. At present we have no plans to further extend these powers.

Children: Maintenance

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many claims from a non-resident parent for a recalculation of child maintenance as a result of a change in the income of that parent were received by the Child Maintenance Service in each of the last three years; and how many of those claims resulted in a change after reassessment.

Mims Davies: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Disability

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 31 January 2020 to Question 10758 on EnAble Fund for Elected Office, when her Department plans to publish its National Strategy for Disabled People.

Justin Tomlinson: I can confirm that the Government will publish a National Strategy for Disabled People in 2020 focusing on removing barriers to ensure disabled people can lead a life of opportunity and fully participate in British society.

Social Security Benefits

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, in what circumstances the Independent Serious Case Panel is instigated.

Justin Tomlinson: The Serious Case Panel meets quarterly.

Social Security Benefits

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, who sits on the Independent Serious Case Panel.

Justin Tomlinson: Membership comprises of Civil Servants and independent members.

Social Security Benefits

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what processes the Independent Serious Case Panel uses when investigating cases.

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the remit is of the Independent Serious Case Panel.

Justin Tomlinson: The Serious Case Panel takes themes and systemic issues that come out of case reviews, and makes recommendations for improvements across the relevant areas of the department.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Water: Safety

Mr Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much money from the public purse was spent on water safety measures in Portsmouth South constituency in (a) 2010, (b) 2015 and (c) 2019.

Rebecca Pow: Drinking water safety measures are not funded through Exchequer funding in England. Water companies are responsible for the safety of the public drinking water supplies in their area. Any drinking water safety measures are funded through customers’ bills. This is regulated by Ofwat, the economic regulator. In Portsmouth, the water supplier is Portsmouth Water. Private water supplies are regulated by local authorities. Although there are no private supplies in the Portsmouth South area (as reported by the local authority in 2019), any necessary safety measures should be paid for by the relevant person. This is usually the owner and occupier of the premises which use the supply.

Recycling

Mrs Andrea Jenkyns: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the effect on the import of waste for recycling in the UK of (a) the UK leaving the EU and (b) the Environment Bill.

Rebecca Pow: The UK’s departure from the EU will not affect the way in which we import waste for recycling in the UK. The Environment Bill includes powers to regulate imports and exports of waste. These provisions will modernise our existing regulation-making powers in this area. The Bill also includes a power to introduce electronic tracking of waste to help tackle waste crime here in the UK.

Livestock: New Forest

Sir Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to publish proposals on replacing the current scheme for payments to commoners for the number of livestock that they release on to the New Forest.

Rebecca Pow: Payments to commoners for the number of livestock that they release on to the New Forest are currently made through Higher Level Stewardship (HLS) Environmental Stewardship agreements. The main New Forest HLS agreement has been recommended for a one-year extension, as have other expiring New Forest HLS agreements. We would expect further negotiations with New Forest agreement holders (and commoners who release livestock onto the land) to take place. This may result in further extensions in the short term, or lead to negotiating a new Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier agreement. From 2024 we will be introducing a new Environmental Land Management (ELM) scheme. ELM will reward farmers and other land managers for delivering environmental public goods such as clean air, and thriving plants and wildlife. We will determine in more detail what ELM will pay for to support the delivery of these public goods as we develop the scheme. A National Pilot for ELM is due to commence in late 2021 and the scheme is scheduled to roll out in late 2024 across England. Our expectation is that HLS agreements, such as the New Forest’s, will provide an excellent foundation for developing into new agreements under ELM from late 2024.

Poultry: Animal Welfare

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will review the adequacy of the animal welfare requirements governing the (a) keeping and breeding of ducks and (b) provision of suitable environmental conditions for that activity; and if she will make a statement.

George Eustice: The welfare of ducks is provided for in welfare the general provisions of the Animal Welfare Act 2006 and the Welfare of Farmed Animals (England) Regulations 2007. Defra has a duck code which encourages high standards of husbandry for the keeping and breeding of farmed ducks, including requirements for handling; suitable housing; stocking rates; and the provision of feed and water. The industry also has its own farm assurance schemes which represent the commercial duck farming industry and has specific requirements to ensure the welfare of farmed ducks, as well as protecting their health, hygiene and food safety.

Non-native Species

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent evidence her Department has of the effect of invasive non-native species since the publication the 2010 technical report entitled The Economic Cost of Invasive Non-Native Species on Great Britain by Frances Williams et al.

Rebecca Pow: The evidence that invasive species are having an ever greater impact on biodiversity, globally and domestically, is undeniable. The 2019 Environmental Audit Committe report, developed using a wide range of evidence sources, highlighted the risks these species pose to native biodiversity. It also called for greater levels of prevention, management, control and public awareness regarding invasive species and their negative effects on the environment. Defra is also in receipt of the 2019 UN global assessment report on biodiversity which concluded that “the numbers of invasive species per country have risen by around 70 per cent since 1970” and that “invasive non-native species have contributed to 40 per cent of the animal extinctions that have happened in the last 400 years and are the biggest threat to biodiversity on islands”. Defra is aware that the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services global assessment report on biodiversity and ecosystem services found that invasive species were one of the top five direct drivers for changes to nature and were included in a list with climate change and pollution. Reports such as “The Economic Cost of Invasive Non-Native Species on Great Britain” remain highly relevant, as the impact of invasive non-native species (INNS) has not decreased since the report was published. Defra recently however commissioned a scoping study aimed at documenting the current evidence in relation to the ecosystem service impacts of INNS in the UK. This study[1] sought to determine the feasibility of expanding on the 2010 report by estimating natural capital costs incurred by INNS, alongside the direct economic costs which the 2010 report focused upon. [1] Scoping study: ecosystem services and natural capital costs of invasive non-native species in the UK - BE0162 http://randd.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Menu=Menu&Module=More&Location=None&Completed=1&ProjectID=20315

Invasive Alien Species (Enforcement and Permitting) Order 2019

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what consultations her Department has undertaken on the implementation of the Invasive Alien Species (Enforcement and Permitting) Order 2019.

Rebecca Pow: Defra has undertaken two formal consultations relating to the Invasive Alien Species (Enforcement and Permitting) Order 2019. They were: “Invasive Non-native Species: Tackling Invasive Non-native Species – A new enforcement regime” and “Management measures for widely spread Invasive Alien Species (IAS) in England and Wales”. These consultations ran from from 9 January 2018 to 3 April 2018 and 18 July 2019 to 12 September 2019 respectively.

Squirrels

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will amend the Invasive Alien Species (Enforcement and Permitting) Order 2019 to permit the licensing of vet practices and wildlife hospitals to release grey squirrels in areas where they pose no risk to native squirrel populations.

Rebecca Pow: Releasing grey squirrels back into the environment, even in areas away from red squirrels, would encourage a wide range of further negative impacts associated with this species towards other native species, forestry assets and national parks. The release of grey squirrels can only be allowed as a management measure under the Invasive Alien Species (Enforcement and Permitting) Order 2019 if it contributes to the population control, eradication or containment of the species. The Government will, therefore, not be updating this Order to permit the release of grey squirrels by veterinary practices or wildlife hospitals. The devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland do not allow grey squirrels to be kept or released. The Invasive Alien Species (Enforcement and Permitting) Order, which came into effect on 1 December 2019, thus brought England in line with the rest of the United Kingdom. Any grey squirrel that requires medical attention can be taken to a licensed facility where it can remain for the rest of its natural life.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Public Appointments

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what support her Department provides to representatives of wildlife organisations to encourage them to take up positions on the boards of (a) parks and (b) other environmental organisations; and what training her Department provides to people wanting to take up those positions.

Rebecca Pow: Defra uses extensive networks to promote public appointment opportunities, including to representatives of wildlife organisations, for National Park Authorities and other public bodies. We do not provide specific support or training to people wishing to take up a public appointment but once appointed new appointees undertake an induction process to prepare them for the role.

Dogs: Smuggling

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the oral contribution of the Prime Minister of 15 January 2020, Official Report, column, 1020, what the timeframe is for bringing forward legislative proposals to reduce the rate of smuggling of puppies and dogs; and what provisions she plans to include in those proposals.

George Eustice: The Government takes the welfare of all animals seriously, and that is why we have committed to cracking down on puppy smuggling. It is an abhorrent trade which causes suffering to the smuggled dogs and puts the health of pets and people in the UK at risk.

Food: Imports

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the level of food products imported from countries at risk of climate change.

George Eustice: No assessment has been made of the level of food products that are at risk of climate change and imported from other countries. Climate change occurs on a global scale, and the International Panel on Climate Change has stated that warming greater than the global average is being experienced in many land regions. The UK imports approximately £50 billion of agri-food products per year. Of this, £35 billion of agri-food imports were from the EU27 in 2018. Defra has also published experimental statistics which estimate imported greenhouse gas emissions compared with emissions from domestic production, but this is not broken down by country or import type. The Government is clear that more trade should not come at the expense of the environment. We will maintain and enhance our already high environmental standards whilst negotiating future trade agreements.

Squirrels

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has made an estimate of the number of red squirrels by the end of the current Parliament; and if she will make a statement.

Rebecca Pow: The conservation of red squirrels is a devolved matter. The Government works closely with leading red squirrel conservation organisations who estimate the red squirrel population in England to be around 15,000.

Bovine Tuberculosis: Disease Control

Dr Luke Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support farmers to prevent the spread of bovine TB.

George Eustice: The Government’s 25-year bovine TB eradication strategy published in 2014 aims to secure officially bovine TB free status for England by 2038 and is the basis of all we are doing to combat the disease. The cornerstone of our strategy is a policy of regular testing and removal of infected cattle from herds. We have also incrementally introduced tougher controls on cattle movements from herds at risk of infection and more sensitive tests. We have introduced measures to encourage greater risk management and more information for the keepers of cattle. We have also deployed wildlife controls in areas where infection in badgers is linked to cattle breakdowns, and we have deployed new biosecurity measures to try to break the cycle of infection between cattle and badgers. In 2018, the Secretary of State commissioned Professor Sir Charles Godfray and a team of experts to conduct an independent review of the strategy and provide advice on how to take it to the next phase (‘the Godfray Review’). Sir Charles submitted his report to Ministers in October 2018. The Government’s formal response will be published in due course.

Bovine Tuberculosis: Compensation

Alberto Costa: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of equalising compensation payments to farmers in England for TB-affected cattle with those paid to farmers in devolved areas of the UK.

George Eustice: Responsibility for animal health policies, including statutory compensation schemes, is fully devolved. Defra carried out a statutory review of the relevant legislation in England - the Cattle Compensation (England) Order 2012 (SI 2012 No.1379) and the Individual Ascertainment of Value (England) Order 2012 (SI 2012 No.1380) - in 2016. A summary report of that review published in July 2017 is available on the GOV.UK website.

Moorland: Fire Prevention

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of fire prevention measures for moorland in and around Sheffield.

Rebecca Pow: Natural England (NE) has recently undertaken an evidence review of the causes and impacts of wildfire. This review is feeding into the Government’s land management policies and practices. Over the last 12 months the local Peak District Fire Operations Group has set up a small working group to develop a strategic approach to managing wildfire risk and NE is working closely with estates across the Peak District to develop Long Term Plans that include addressing wildfire risk and management.

Insects: Electromagnetic Fields

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the effect on insects of electro-magnetic radiation.

Rebecca Pow: Defra has supported national and global comprehensive scientific reviews on status and pressures for insects and other pollinators. In 2014, we published a review of the status and value of pollinators in England and the UK, which we updated last year. We also supported a major global review of the status and threats to insect pollinators, published in 2015 by the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services. These reports did not identify electromagnetic radiation (EMR) as a significant threat to pollinating insects. Instead they highlighted key threats such as habitat loss, inappropriate pesticide use and invasive species. We have subsequently taken action on each of these. Further studies have been published subsequently. In 2018, an EU-funded ‘EKLIPSE’ study concluded that “few ecological studies exist, but when they do, the reported EMR effects are negligible, contrasting, or cannot be separated from other environmental factors”. Scientific evidence on risks to pollinators is continually evolving and we take it very seriously. We continue to work closely with leading UK scientists to keep EMR and other potential drivers of change under review.

Beverage Containers: Recycling

Sir Graham Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will hold discussions with Girlguiding on their research on young people's views on deposit return schemes.

Rebecca Pow: Defra officials have met Girlguiding to discuss their research on deposit return schemes. We will continue to engage with a large range of stakeholders, including young people, to ensure everyone has their say.

Hunting

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many deer are shot in England and Wales each year; how many of those deer are shot cleanly the first time; and how many need to be dispatched with a second or further shot; and if she will make a statement.

Rebecca Pow: Defra does not hold this data regarding the culling of deer. The Deer Act 1991 provides a robust framework for the protection of deer, including the welfare of shot deer.

Bovine Tuberculosis: Disease Control

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the cost to the public purse is of each badger cull zone; and what estimate she has made of the economic cost-benefit of each of those areas to date; and if she will make a statement.

George Eustice: Bovine TB is one of the greatest animal health threats to the UK and the disease costs the public over £100 million a year, with the cost to the farming industry around £50 million a year. The Government badger cull costs are published annually on the GOV.UK website and can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/bovine-tb-government-badger-control-costs. The 2019 costs are still being calculated and will be published later this year. Costs are not broken down by cull zone. The most recent badger control policy value for money analysis, carried out in 2019, estimates the Net Present Value i.e. the monetised benefits of Badger Control over 11 years at £1.08 million per area. Further information can be found on GOV.UK at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/bovine-tb-badger-control-policy-value-for-money-analysis.

Bovine Tuberculosis: Disease Control

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department plans to continue expanding the boundary of the minimum infected area in Cumbria in the event that the Animal and Plant Health Agency continues finding badgers outside that area which are infected with TB; and if she will make a statement.

George Eustice: In Area 32-Cumbria the cull area is made up of two parts, the minimum infected area and the outer cull area. The minimum infected area is based on: the location of the infected badgers, associated farms and contiguous breakdown areas, plus a radius of the estimated average social group territory based on main sett distribution; and the location of another farm with a TB breakdown very strongly suspected on epidemiological grounds to be badger related. Therefore the boundary could be expanded if evidence shows that infected badgers are found outside the boundary, as it was in 2019.

Bovine Tuberculosis: Cumbria

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, for what reasons the original planning for the minimum infected area (MIA) in Cumbria did not include barriers to prevent badgers from passing to and from the MIA; and if she will make a statement.

George Eustice: Natural barriers to badger movement were used, as far as practical, for the outer boundary of Area 32 to minimise the risk of possible perturbation effects. Area 32 is made up of two parts, the minimum infected area and the outer cull area. The outer cull area acts as a buffer between the minimum infected area, where the majority of infection is located, and those outside of the cull area.

Bovine Tuberculosis: Cumbria

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Government has made an assessment of the potential merits of a buffer zone around the minimum infected area in Cumbria for the vaccination of badgers, and if she will make a statement.

George Eustice: A ‘buffer zone’ currently operates around the minimum infected area in Area 32-Cumbria; this is referred to as the outer cull area (OCA). Both the minimum infected area and the outer cull area together make up the intervention area. The OCA is based on estimated average badger social group territory size surrounding the minimum infected area, to take into account the possibility that infection may have already spread in the badger population. The boundary was adjusted to adhere to natural barriers to badger movement as far as practical to minimise the risk of possible perturbation effects. The results of testing of badgers from the 2019 cull are still being analysed. When completed they will inform decisions as to what type of badger control method should be applied in 2020.

Poultry

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when her Department plans to bring forward legislative proposals to amend Schedule 2 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 to remove the Greenland White Fronted goose as a shootable species.

Rebecca Pow: The Government intends to prohibit the hunting of Greenland white-fronted goose by removing the species from schedule 2 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. The legislation will be laid by the spring.

Fisheries: English Channel

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to prevent clashes between British and French fishermen in the English Channel.

George Eustice: During the transition period the UK will continue to abide by the current rules of the Common Fisheries Policy, which apply to all UK, EU and other vessels fishing in UK waters. The safety of the UK fleet remains our highest priority and we continue to monitor the presence and activities of vessels in the English Channel, as we do across the rest of our waters. We have already taken measures to strengthen our surveillance capacity and make sure that the appropriate fisheries enforcement capability is in place to patrol our waters and enforce regulations.

Recreation Spaces

Taiwo Owatemi: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government on ensuring that communities have a balance between green spaces and infrastructure.

Rebecca Pow: The Secretary of State has had no formal discussions with the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government (HCLG) about balancing the provision of green spaces and infrastructure in communities in the past six months. Defra is working closely with the Ministry of HCLG on a number of projects seeking to ensure that green space and wider ‘green infrastructure’ is an integral part of communities. This includes developing revised planning guidance on open space, design guidance covering green spaces and green infrastructure standards for new development. The Environment Bill makes biodiversity net gain mandatory for development granted permission under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. This will mean that developments must demonstrate a measurable biodiversity net gain of at least 10% above pre-development biodiversity value. This will help to ensure that new development in England enhances the environment, contributes to our ecological networks and conserves our precious landscapes.

Squirrels

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to (a) reduce the grey squirrel population and (b) increase the red squirrel population.

Rebecca Pow: The Government is committed to protecting and expanding red squirrel populations and tackling the threats that grey squirrels pose to them. This is a devolved matter, and the information below applies directly to England. The Invasive Alien Species (Enforcement and Permitting) Order 2019 is, however, joint legislation between England and Wales.In December 2019 the Invasive Alien Species (Enforcement and Permitting) Order (2019 No 527) came into force. This legislation ensures that a number of listed invasive species, including grey squirrels, cannot be imported, kept, bred, transported, sold, used or exchanged, allowed to reproduce, or be grown, cultivated, or released into the environment. The Order is an important step in achieving the Government’s strategy to tackle invasive non-native species, as outlined in the Government’s 25 Year Environment Plan. The risks posed by key widespread invasive species, such as the grey squirrel, will be managed though measures aimed at their eradication, population control or containment.The red squirrel is protected under Schedules 5 and 6 of the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981. It is an offence intentionally to kill or injure a red squirrel or intentionally damage or destroy any structure it uses for shelter or protection, as well as to kill or trap the species using certain prohibited methods. Two Sites of Special Scientific Interest: Breckland Forest and Poole Harbour, have been designated in part to protect the red squirrel in England.The Forestry Commission (FC) checks all felling licence applications against a large number of records, including the Red Squirrel Reserves. This allows them to highlight any potential issues and advise the applicant how to avoid the disturbance or damage of protected species. The FC also undertakes actions to protect red squirrels from the impact of grey squirrels more widely as outlined in the Grey Squirrel Action Plan for England.In addition, the FC and Natural England (NE) are members of Red Squirrels Northern England (RSNE), a red squirrel conservation partnership project managed by Northumberland Wildlife Trust, which works in seven northern counties. Defra, NE and the FC are signatories to the United Kingdom Squirrel Accord (UKSA), working with over 30 other signatories, including RSNE, to secure and expand red squirrel populations. Defra, in partnership with UKSA, has provided funding for work by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) for the development of a fertility control method for grey squirrels. Further research is needed; however, the results continue to show promise as one potentially effective and humane method to control grey squirrel numbers in the longer term.

Food: Origin Marking

Mr David Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the arrangements will be for the oversight of the Traditional Speciality Guaranteed status of British regional and traditional food after the transition period.

George Eustice: At the end of the transition period, we will establish our Geographical Indication (GI) schemes, as part of our strategy to protect regional and traditional foods. All current UK GI-protected products, including TSGs like Traditionally Reared Pedigree Welsh Pork, will continue to enjoy legal protection in the UK. The new UK GI schemes will welcome applications from the day the schemes enter into force. The Secretary of State will be responsible ultimately for decision-making on new GIs, but we will work closely with Devolved Administrations to run the new schemes. The current enforcement and control rules that apply for GI schemes in the UK will continue to apply after the transition period, including the role of local authorities in ensuring that protection for TSG products is upheld.

Rabbits: Animal Welfare

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the need for regulations on the welfare of rabbits (a) kept as pets and (b) reared for human consumption in (i) domestic and (ii) farming environments; and if she will make a statement.

George Eustice: Under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 it is an offence to cause any unnecessary suffering to an animal or to fail to provide for its welfare and this includes rabbits kept in all respects. The maximum penalty for these offences is six months’ imprisonment and/or an unlimited fine. However, the Government recently announced its support for a Private Members’ Bill which seeks to increase the maximum custodial penalty from six months to five years for the offence of causing unnecessary suffering to an animal. The keeping of commercially farmed rabbits is additionally provided for by the Welfare of Farmed Animals Regulations 2007, which contains general provisions under which all farmed animals must be kept and has a specific schedule for rabbits. Defra also has a statutory welfare code for rabbits which provides good husbandry advice and which keepers of rabbits are required by law to be familiar with and have access to. Failure to observe the provisions of a code may be used in support of a prosecution.

Home Office

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Andrew Rosindell: What recent discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on reducing benefit tourism.

Kevin Foster: The Government is clear that benefits should only be provided for the lawful residents of the UK, including migrants who are settled here.The Government has taken steps to prevent illegal access to benefits, with those migrants who abuse the UK’s hospitality facing having to repay any benefits obtained. The will also be liable to be refused immigration leave, or having it curtailed, prosecution and removal from the UK.

Wales Office

Wales Office: Advertising

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how much his Department spent on advertising in each month since January 2019; which campaigns were funded by that expenditure; and which media (a) outlets and (b) platforms were used for those campaigns.

David T C Davies: The Department spent a total of £16,680 (including VAT) in January 2019 to fund a radio and digital billboard advertising campaign to announce the removal of tolls on the Severn Crossings.

Cabinet Office

Electoral Register: EU Nationals

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether EU citizens will be able to vote in local elections in 2020.

Chloe Smith: I refer the Hon. member to the answer which I gave to PQ 1802 on 29 January 2020.There are no local elections scheduled to take place in Northern Ireland in 2020.The Scottish Parliament is responsible for the franchise for local elections in Scotland and elections to the Scottish Parliament.

UK Relations With EU: Ministerial Responsibility

Hilary Benn: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, which Minister has lead responsibility for negotiations on the UK's future relationship with the EU.

Oliver Dowden: I refer the Rt. Hon. Member to the answer given by the Leader of the House of Commons to PQs 11512, 11514, 11515 on 6 February 2020.

Census

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, on what date the ONS supplied the draft Census Order to his Department.

Chloe Smith: I refer the Hon Member to the response which I gave to question 1394 on 15 January 2020.The Census Order remains policy in formulation. It will be presented to both Houses in due course.

Offshore Funds: Ministers and Senior Civil Servants

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when his Department last undertook a review of the adequacy of controls on the use of offshore bank accounts by Ministers and senior civil servants.

Oliver Dowden: I refer the Hon. Member to the answer which I gave to PQ 8404 on Monday 3 February 2020.

Treasury

Soft Drinks: Taxation

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the soft drinks industry levy has been spent on since that levy was introduced.

Mr Simon Clarke: The 2016 Budget announced funding for a number of programmes linked to the revenue from the Soft Drinks Industry Levy. The funding has been allocated to a number of programmes to support pupil health and wellbeing which include:Doubling funding for the primary physical education and Sport Premium to £320 million a year from 2017.Providing £100 million in 2018/19 for the Healthy Pupils Capital Fund.

Air Passenger Duty

Alan Brown: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much revenue has been collected from air passenger duty from (a) Scotland, (b) Wales and (c) England in each year since its introduction.

Mr Simon Clarke: Air Passenger Duty (APD) is an indirect tax paid by airlines, and therefore information in regards to regional revenues is not available. However, HMRC publish estimated disaggregated tax receipts which includes APD apportioned to the countries in the United Kingdom from 1999/00 to 2018/19https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/disaggregation-of-hmrc-tax-receipts

Mental Health Services: Reciprocal Arrangements

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to ensure equitable access for people with past or present mental health problems for travel to travel insurance after the EU transition period.

John Glen: From 1 January 2021, it will be particularly important to get travel insurance with the right cover if you have a pre-existing medical condition. This is because the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) will only be valid up to 31 December 2020. On 5 February, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published new rules and guidance to improve access to travel insurance for all consumers with medical conditions, including those with mental health conditions. Included within the FCA’s rules is a requirement for firms to signpost consumers to specialist providers if they are declined cover, offered cover with an exclusion, or charged a significantly higher premium based on their medical condition.

Cash Dispensing

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to ensure that people on low incomes have local access to a free-to-use ATM.

John Glen: The Government is committed to supporting digital payments whilst safeguarding access to cash for those who need it. To support this, the Government has launched the Joint Authorities Cash Strategy (JACS) Group – which brings together the Payment Systems Regulator, Financial Conduct Authority and Bank of England – to ensure a comprehensive oversight of the UK’s overall cash infrastructure. The Government expects industry to play a crucial role in protecting access to cash. As part of its Financial Inclusion Programme, LINK, the scheme that runs the UK’s largest ATM network, has introduced premiums of up to £2.75 per transaction that support ATMs in the most deprived areas of the UK and runs an initiative for local areas to request an ATM. The Government-established Payment Systems Regulator regulates LINK, and is holding LINK to account over their commitments to maintain the broad geographic spread ATMs that are free at the point of use.

Infrastructure: Finance

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the timetable is for the publication of the National Infrastructure Strategy.

Jesse Norman: The Government will be publishing the National Infrastructure Strategy alongside the Budget on 11 March. The Strategy will set out further details of the Government’s plan to increase investment to transform the UK’s infrastructure; and respond to the recommendations made by the National Infrastructure Commission in the National Infrastructure Assessment.

National Insurance Contributions

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to increase the Lower Earning Limit in line with the primary national insurance contribution threshold.

Jesse Norman: The Primary Threshold will increase above inflation from £166 to £183 per week. This does not affect State Pension entitlement. The Government has announced that the Lower Earnings Limit, the point at which employees start to build State Pension entitlement, will be increased in line with inflation from £118 to £120 per week from April 2020.

Oil: Exports

Ben Lake: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much revenue accrued to the public purse from the export of crude and refined oil in 2018.

Mr Simon Clarke: The UK’s oil and gas tax regime applies to the production of oil and gas in the UK and on the United Kingdom Continental Shelf. It comprises three elements, all of which are calculated on the basis of profits, similar to Corporation Tax.Since the final consumption point of the product is not relevant for the tax calculation, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) does not collect this information from oil and gas producers. Therefore HMRC does not hold information on the revenue accrued from the exported oil and/or gas.Statistics of Government revenues from UK Oil and Gas production are published annually on gov.uk website – a link to the most recent publication (July 2019) is provided below. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/818296/Statistics_of_government_revenues_from_UK_oil_and_gas_production_July_2019.pdf

Air Passenger Duty

Steve Double: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the effect of Air Passenger Duty on regional and international connectivity.

Steve Double: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effect of Air Passenger Duty on the financial viability of routes and airlines.

Mr Simon Clarke: As announced on 14 January, HM Treasury is reviewing Air Passenger Duty to ensure regional connectivity is strengthened while meeting the UK’s climate change commitments to achieve net zero emissions by 2050. HM Treasury is engaging with relevant departments as part of this review.

Enterprise Investment Scheme

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the  effectiveness of the support offered by the Enterprise Investment Scheme to the independent film industry.

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the adequacy of the support offered by the Enterprise Investment Scheme to the independent film industry.

Jesse Norman: The Enterprise Investment Scheme is intended to incentivise investment in early-stage, entrepreneurial businesses seeking growth finance. The EIS is designed to apply equally across all qualifying businesses to prevent market distortions. As such, there has been no assessment on the application of the EIS to specific industries or sectors. In 2018/19, 3,900 companies from a range of industries used EIS to raise over £1.9 billion of capital. The Government recognises the valuable contribution of the film industry to the UK economy, which is why it also provides industry-specific support via the film tax relief. In 2018-19 alone, the film sector benefitted from over £595m worth of support, and 245 completed films had claimed film tax relief.

Cars: Insurance

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent discussions he has had with the Financial Conduct Authority on safeguarding against discrimination in the car insurance market.

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to ensure that car insurance premiums do not discriminate drivers because of their ethnicity.

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of whether drivers born outside the UK pay higher car insurance premiums than drivers born in the UK.

John Glen: The Equality Act 2010 prohibits firms from discriminating against consumers with most protected characteristics, one of which is race. Insurers can only discriminate based on a limited range of characteristics if they can provide objective, accurate, and reliable evidence that the consumer is at a higher risk of making a claim, and if the information they used to assess the application was used in a reasonable way. Furthermore, firms are required to treat consumers fairly under the Financial Conduct Authority’s rules. The FCA is empowered to address misconduct, and where this has occurred it can undertake full investigations, and as a result impose financial penalties or even order firms to cease certain activities.

Infrastructure: EU Grants and Loans

Carolyn Harris: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has plans to replicate Connecting Europe Facility funding after the transition period.

Carolyn Harris: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he ha plans to replicate the funding that the UK Safer Internet Centre receives from the European Union's Connecting Europe Facility after the transition period.

Mr Simon Clarke: The Political Declaration states the UK is open to participation in certain EU programmes, if it is in our interest to do so. The proposed regulations for the next 2021-27 CEF programme are still being discussed in the EU and has yet to be finalised. Our future participation in programmes will be subject to negotiations on the UK-EU relationship. Decisions on future budget provisions are a matter for the Comprehensive Spending Review. The Online Harms White Paper, published in April 2019, set out plans for world-leading legislation to make the UK the safest place in the world to be online. This will make companies more responsible for their users’ safety online, especially children and other vulnerable groups.  Infrastructure is a top priority for the Government, and we will be setting out our long-term vision in the upcoming National Infrastructure Strategy which will be published at Budget. We are committed to building on the strong foundations of the Clean Growth Strategy and the Industrial Strategy to deliver the emissions reductions we need to see across the whole economy, including in the power sector. We are considering a range of options with regards to the future of infrastructure across the UK as part of the Government’s plans to level-up the economy.

Financial Services Compensation Scheme

Ronnie Cowan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions officials in his Department have had with (a) stakeholders and (b) representatives from the Financial Conduct Authority on the review of the calculation of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme levy.

John Glen: The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) is an independent non-governmental body. The FSCS carries out its compensation function within rules set by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), who are also independent from government. The FSCS levy is set annually by the FSCS within the limits set by the FCA and PRA. It is for the FCA and PRA to consider the impact of the levies on the firms they regulate, acting in line with their statutory duties. The Government has no role in setting the levy.

Tax Avoidance

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the number of people who will be subject to the 2019 Loan Charge after the implementation of the recommendations by Sir Amyas Morse.

Jesse Norman: Of the estimated 50,000 individuals affected by the loan charge, the Government currently estimates that around 11,000 will be taken out of the loan charge altogether. In addition, individuals who have settled or are settling their tax liability with HMRC will be out of scope of the charge. There is not yet a firm estimate of the number who will choose to settle and so be out of scope of the loan charge.

Employment: Taxation

Gavin Robinson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the timescale is for the completion of the review of IR35 tax regulations.

Jesse Norman: The review of the off-payroll working rules reform (also known as IR35) was announced on 7 January 2020. As set out at Budget 2018, the reform is due to be extended to medium and large organisations in all sectors from 6 April 2020. The review is looking to determine if any further steps can be taken to ensure smooth and successful implementation of the reform. The review will conclude by mid-February 2020, after which point the recommendations will be made public.

Insurance

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what progress the Financial Conduct Authority has made in directing consumers with pre-existing and historical medical conditions to the most appropriate insurance providers.

John Glen: On 5 February, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published new rules and guidance to improve access to travel insurance for all consumers with medical conditions. Included within the FCA’s rules is a requirement for firms to signpost consumers to specialist providers if they are declined cover, offered cover with an exclusion, or charged a significantly higher premium based on their medical condition.

Children: Social Services

Helen Hayes: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Education on the allocation of long-term funding for children’s services.

Rishi Sunak: HM Treasury works closely with the Department for Education and Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to support the financial sustainability of local councils, so they can continue to offer a range of vital services, including children’s services. Decisions on long-term funding for local government will be taken at the Comprehensive Spending Review.

Beer: Excise Duties

Grahame Morris: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will bring forward proposals to increase the small brewers relief threshold from 5000 to 10,000 hectolitres.

Mr Simon Clarke: As announced at Budget 2018, the Treasury is currently reviewing Small Brewers Relief. Further announcements will be made in due course through the Budget process.

Beer and Public Houses

Stephen Kinnock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what fiscal plans he has to support the pubs and breweries industry.

Mr Simon Clarke: All taxes are kept under review and the impact of a change to beer duty is considered at each fiscal event, including its effect on pubs, breweries and the wider economy.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Football: Bosworth

Dr Luke Evans: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department will take to use the legacy of Euro 2020 to improve grassroots football facilities in Bosworth constituency.

Nigel Adams: The Government is committed to ensuring people across the country have access to football facilities, which is why we committed to investing £550m into grassroots football facilities over the next 10 years. The government has also committed £1m to support The Football Association’s and Sport England’s programme to raise awareness and promote Euro 2020 across England. This includes improving football facilities around the country - known as the ‘National Promotion Programme’. The ‘National Promotion Programme’ will focus on both new and existing community football facilities, forming part of the existing National Football Facilities Strategy. The Football Foundation, who provide Exchequer funding on behalf of Sport England as well as other investments funded by the FA and Premier League, have already invested £1,803,840 for football projects in the constituency of Bosworth. This includes £1,750,044 for facilities that have supported Hinckley United FC, the Richmond Park Sporting Hub, Market Bosworth Sports Club, and Greentowers FC Hinckley.

Commonwealth Games 2022

Liam Byrne: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether (a) verbal and (b) written guidance has been issued to the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games delivery authority on becoming accredited by the Living Wage Foundation as a living wage employer.

Nigel Adams: The Department has confirmed to the Organising Committee for the 2022 Commonwealth Games that it should ensure that its staff and contractors are paid the national living wage, in line with the government’s policy. The Organising Committee also asks suppliers to demonstrate how they support its Social Values Charter as part of the procurement process. The Social Values Charter is on the Organising Committee’s website at https://www.birmingham2022.com/news/blog/delivering-social-value/.

Video Games: Children

Steve Reed: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to encourage parents to set up technical controls on their children's gaming devices to control their gaming and online use.

Nigel Adams: The government continues to work with industry and the age ratings bodies to help consumers learn about parental controls available on devices, including through initiatives such as AskAboutGames and PEGI advice about safe gaming. We also welcomed the launch in January 2020 of the games industry’s Get Smart About P.L.A.Y. campaign encouraging parents to use parental controls and take an active role in their children’s gaming.

VJ Day: Anniversaries

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what plans the Government has to mark the 75th anniversary of VJ Day.

Helen Whately: The Government plans to make an announcement on commemorative events to mark the 75th anniversaries of VJ and VE Day in due course.

Football: Females

Julie Elliott: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what plans he has to increase the number of female football coaches.

Nigel Adams: Our national sports council, Sport England, is investing £2 million per year into the Football Association (FA) to support their work to make their coaching workforce more representative of wider society. This includes providing bursaries to support women and people from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds to develop their coaching abilities from the grassroots to the elite levels of the game.Government’s Sporting Future strategy recognised the important role coaching plays in helping people become and stay active. Sport England, evaluated the coaching landscape and developed a new coaching plan for England, ‘Coaching in an Active Nation’, which was published in November 2016. This was developed following consultation with coaches, coach educators and national governing bodies of sport, including the FA, and looks to increase diversity in coaching to better reflect underrepresented groups.

Football: Females

Julie Elliott: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what plans his Department has to allocate funding from the public purse to the development of women's football.

Nigel Adams: We are determined to encourage more women and girls to get active, something we set out in our sport strategy, Sporting Future. Football is a popular choice for women and girls to get active: it is the second most popular team sport in terms of participation for adult women, and the top ranked team sport in terms of participation for girls. It is also growing in appeal for spectators with a record total audience of 28.1 million tuning in to watch the BBC coverage of last year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup.Through our national sports council, Sport England, the government is investing £24.6m in The Football Association over the course of 2016-21 for its work on grassroots participation, the football talent pathway, and coaching programmes. Within this, there is no specific ring-fencing of funding between men's and women's programmes, apart from £2.6m which is specifically reserved for women and girls talent programmes.Sport England has also awarded The FA £544,500 to date to deliver The FA FIVES national promotion programme, a mass participation five a side football competition linked to EURO 2020. Its aim is to provide opportunities throughout England for men and women to take part in a fun, friendly football event.Separately, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport invested £18m in football facilities through the Football Foundation in each of 2017, 2018 and 2019. It is not possible to separate out the investment amounts by gender.

Listed Events

Julie Elliott: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what plans his Department has to categorise the (a) Women's Football European Championship, (b) Women's Football World Cup, (c) Women's FA Cup and (d) other competitions listed for male sportspeople as Listed Events for free to air sports viewing.

Nigel Adams: In September 2019 the government consulted on whether to add women’s equivalents of men’s events currently on the list to both group A and group B categories. The consultation closed on 11 December 2019. The government is now carefully considering the responses in detail and we will respond in due course.

Football: Sportsgrounds

Catherine West: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if he will make it his policy to introduce safe-standing at football stadia in the event that the Sports Ground Safety Authority review makes that recommendation.

Nigel Adams: As set out in our manifesto, the government is already committed to work with fans and clubs towards introducing safe standing. To deliver this we will be relying upon the expertise of the Sports Grounds Safety Authority to ensure existing levels of safety are maintained, and I welcome the latest findings from research they have commissioned in this area. Over a million people watch live football at a ground every week, and this an issue many feel passionately about, but it is imperative that watching football continues to be safe. The SGSA will continue to gather evidence over the remainder of this season and work with the relevant authorities, clubs and fans to deliver our commitments.

Prime Minister

Intelligence and Security Committee

Steve Reed: To ask the Prime Minister, what the timeframe is for the establishment of the Intelligence and Security Committee.

Neil Coyle: To ask the Prime Minister, what discussions he has had with the Leader of the Opposition on nominations to the Intelligence and Security Committee.

Boris Johnson: I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave to the Hon. Member the Member for St Albans on 3 February 2020, UIN 9144. https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-01-28/9144/

National Security

Neil Coyle: To ask the Prime Minister, what steps he is taking to ensure that the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament’s report on the Russian threat to the UK is published without delay.

Boris Johnson: I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave the Hon. Member the Member for Midlothian on 5 February 2020, Official Report, Col. 314. https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2020-02-05/debates/9EAB35C6-1EF6-4A18-B345-56F34D5D4504/Engagements